Middlebury is the shire town (county seat) of Addison County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,152. Middlebury is home to Middlebury College and the Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History and the adjacent hardware store.

History

One of the New Hampshire Grants, Middlebury was chartered by Colonial Governor

Benning Wentworth Benning Wentworth (July 24, 1696 – October 14, 1770) was an American merchant, landowner and colonial administrator who served as the List of colonial governors of New Hampshire, governor of New Hampshire from 1741 to 1766. He is best known ...

on November 2, 1761. The name "Middlebury" came from its location between the towns of

Salisbury Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...

and

New Haven New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is the third largest city in Co ...

. It was awarded to John Evarts and 62 others. The French and Indian Wars ended in 1763; the first settlers arrived in 1766. John Chipman was the first to clear his land, Lot Seven. During the Revolutionary War, much of the town was burned in Carleton's Raid on November 6, 1778. After the war concluded in 1783, settlers returned to rebuild homes, clear forests and establish farms. The principal crops were

grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached husk, hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and ...

s and hay. Landowners vied for the lucrative honor of having the village center grow on their properties. A survey dispute with Salisbury led to the forfeiture of Gamaliel Painter's farm to that town, and his transition from farming to developing Middlebury Village near his and Abisha Washburn's mill, together with other mills that surrounded the Otter Creek falls. Industries would include a

cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...

factory,

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that h ...

, pail factory,

paper mill A paper mill is a factory devoted to making paper from vegetable fibres such as wood pulp, old rags, and other ingredients. Prior to the invention and adoption of the Fourdrinier machine and other types of paper machine that use an endless belt ...

, woolen factory,

iron Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...

foundry, and

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...

quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mining, open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock (geology), rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some juri ...

. The Rutland & Burlington Railroad first arrived on September 1, 1849. Around 1830, Middlebury was the second-largest town in Vermont. Middlebury College, one of the United States' elite

liberal arts college A liberal arts college or liberal arts institution of higher education is a college with an emphasis on Undergraduate education, undergraduate study in the Liberal arts education, liberal arts of humanities and science. Such colleges aim to impart ...

s, was founded in 1800. It is a member of the NESCAC. In the summer, the town plays host to the annual Middlebury College Language Schools, as well as the college's Bread Loaf Writers' Conference, the oldest surviving conference of its kind in the nation. On January 2, 1838, a group of ''Patriote'' refugees from the Lower Canada Rebellion met in Middlebury to plan their future course of action. It was attended by two major ''Patriote'' leaders,

Louis-Joseph Papineau Louis-Joseph Papineau (; October 7, 1786 – September 23, 1871), born in Montreal, Province of Quebec (1763–1791), Quebec, was a politician, lawyer, and the landlord of the ''seigneurie de la Petite-Nation''. He was the leader of the reform ...

and Robert Nelson, but they were not able to agree on a unified plan. On October 22, 2007, central Middlebury was evacuated for a short time because of a train

derailment In rail transport, a derailment is a type of train wreck that occurs when a rail vehicle such as a train comes off its rails. Although many derailments are minor, all result in temporary disruption of the proper operation of the railway sys ...

; the Middlebury Union Middle School served as the evacuation headquarters. Today, as the largest town by population in Addison County, Middlebury serves as the commercial and business center for the region. Downtown hosts a three-screen movie theater, the post office, and two historic inns, as well as many shops and restaurants. There is considerable development along U.S. Route 7 heading south of town, including two supermarkets, two drugstores, most of the town's gas stations, and several fast-food spots. Of note is Middlebury's A&W, Vermont's only remaining car-hop restaurant and a popular spot with both locals and Middlebury College students.

Geography

Middlebury is located near the center of Addison County in western Vermont. The town is drained by Otter Creek, which flows from south to north along the western edge of the town, with the falls at the center of the village. The Middlebury River flows west to Otter Creek out of the mountains. Chipman Hill, a hill of glacial till, rises above the village just to the northeast. Foothills of the

Green Mountains The Green Mountains are a mountain range in the U.S. state of Vermont and are a subrange of the Appalachian Mountains. The range runs primarily south to north and extends approximately from the border with Massachusetts to the border with Que ...

border the town to the east, with the Champlain Valley to the west. 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 , of which is land and , or 1.00%, is water. Middlebury is crossed by U.S. Route 7, Vermont Route 23,

Vermont Route 30 Vermont Route 30 (VT 30) is a north–south state highway in the U.S. state of Vermont. VT 30 runs from U.S. Route 5 in Vermont, U.S. Route 5 (US 5) and Vermont Route 9, VT 9 in Brattleboro, Vermont, Brattleboro to U.S. Rout ...

, Vermont Route 116, and Vermont Route 125. It is bordered by the towns of

and

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

to the north, Ripton to the east,

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

and

Weybridge Weybridge () is a town in the Borough of Elmbridge, Elmbridge district in Surrey, England, around southwest of central London. The settlement is recorded as ''Waigebrugge'' and ''Weibrugge'' in the 7th century and the name derives from a cro ...

to the west, and

to the south. A new bridge over Otter Creek connecting Cross Street to Bakery Lane opened in November 2010 to serve as a shortcut and alleviate traffic through downtown. The village of East Middlebury is located in the southern part of the town, east of U.S. Route 7.

Climate

This climatic region is typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Middlebury has a

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 cold ...

, abbreviated "Dfb" on climate maps.

Demographics

As of the

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 ...

of 2010, there were 8,494 people, 2,860 households, and 1,642 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was 209.7 people per square mile (80.9/km²). There were 2,805 housing units at an average density of 71.9 per square mile (27.7/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 90.3%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 4.3% Asian, 3.0%

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 of any race, 3.0% from two or more races, 1.3%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.66% from other races, 0.2% Native American and 0.02%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

. There were 2,657 households, out of which 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.6% were couples living together and joined in either

marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

civil union A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, primarily created to provide legal recognition for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage, with ch ...

, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.3% were non-families. 35.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.90. In the town, the population was spread out, with 17.5% under the age of 18, 31.4% from 18 to 24, 18.6% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 13.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 27 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.7 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 87.5 males. The median income for a household in the town was $37,723, and the median income for a family was $46,691. Males had a median income of $32,645 versus $25,994 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $17,926. About 5.3% of families and 9.6% 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 ...

, including 8.2% of those under age 18 and 6.1% of those aged 65 or over.

Arts and culture

Points of interest

* Emma Willard Memorial * Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History * Ilsley Public Library * Middlebury to Her Soldiers (sculpture) * TAM – Trail Around Middlebury

Education

Public

* Mary Hogan Elementary, grades Pre-K–5 * Middlebury Union Middle School, grades 6–8 * Middlebury Union High School, grades 9–12 * P.A. Hannaford Career Center regional technical center serving grades 9–12 and adults

Private

* The Aurora School (Pre-K only) * Bridge School (elementary) * St. Mary's Catholic Elementary School – closed 2016 * The Gailer School – closed 2012

Higher education

* Community College of Vermont – Middlebury campus * Middlebury College

Infrastructure

Medical care

Middlebury and the surrounding area are served by Porter Medical Center.

Transportation

Air

Middlebury State Airport, located east of the town, is for private aviation.

Bus

Bus service is provided by Tri Valley Transit. Premier Coach provides an intercity bus line in a joint venture effort with

Greyhound The English Greyhound, or simply the Greyhound, is a dog breed, breed of dog, a sighthound which has been bred for coursing, greyhound racing and hunting. Some are kept as show dogs or pets. Greyhounds are defined as a tall, muscular, smooth-c ...

via Vermont Translines.

Highway

* U.S. Route 7 is the primary north/south highway through the town. It is known as Court Street south of the village, and North Pleasant Street north of the village. * Vermont Route 23 is a north/south highway known as Weybridge Street and is located on the west side of town, crossing the college campus. *

is a north/south highway entering the town on the south town line with Cornwall and ends at Route 7. It is known as Main Street within the town. * Vermont Route 116 is a north/south highway located on the east side of town, ending near the East Middlebury village at Route 7. It is known as Case Street in Middlebury except for a short portion known as Ossie Road within the East Middlebury village. * Vermont Route 125 is an east/west highway entering the town on the west side through Middlebury College where it is known as College Street. East of Route 7, Route 125 is known as East Main Street up until it exits the town at the Ripton town line.

Rail

Amtrak's '' Ethan Allen Express'' serves the city's station, connecting it to Burlington to the north and New York City to the south. Service began in the city in July 2022. Until 1953, the Rutland Railroad ran passenger service on the '' Green Mountain Flyer'' (New York City - Montreal) and the overnight ''Mount Royal,'' making stops in the city.

Notable people

Julia Alvarez Julia Alvarez (born March 27, 1950) is an American New Formalist poet, novelist, and essayist. She rose to prominence with the novels '' How the García Girls Lost Their Accents'' (1991), ''In the Time of the Butterflies'' (1994), and ''Yo! ...

, author * Robert B. Bates, Speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives * Joseph Battell, publisher and philanthropist * Ricardo Chávez Castañeda, author *

François Clemmons François Scarborough Clemmons (born April 23, 1945) is an American singer, actor, writer and teacher. He is known for his appearances as "Officer Clemmons" on the PBS television series ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' from 1968 to 1993. Early li ...

, actor and teacher * Thomas Treadwell Davis, U.S. congressman * Lea Davison, professional mountain biker and two-time olympian *

John Deere Deere & Company, Trade name, doing business as John Deere (), is an American corporation that manufactures agricultural machinery, heavy equipment, forestry machinery, diesel engines, drivetrains (axles, Transmission (mechanical device), transmi ...

, inventor and manufacturer * James Rood Doolittle, U.S. senator from

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

* Joel Doolittle, 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 ...

, born in Russell * Jim Douglas, 80th governor of Vermont * Ray Fisher, professional baseball pitcher and college coach * Robert Frost (1874–1963), poet * Ruth Hardy, member of the

Vermont Senate The Vermont Senate is the upper house of the Vermont General Assembly, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The senate consists of 30 members elected from multi-member districts. Each senator repre ...

* Peter J. Hincks, Vermont State Treasurer * Ronald D. Liebowitz, former president of Middlebury College * Charles Linsley, Vermont attorney and politician * Gabriel Mann, actor and former model * Samuel Mattocks, Vermont State Treasurer and father of

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

John Mattocks * John M. McCardell, Jr., president emeritus and professor at Middlebury College * Bill McKibben, author and environmentalist * James Meacham, U.S. congressman * Gamaliel Painter, local politician and town leader * Edward John Phelps, lawyer and diplomat * Samuel S. Phelps, U.S. senator * William H. Porter, banker * Steven C. Rockefeller, religion professor and son of Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller * Patricia Ross, cross country skier * Jarrod Sammis, Vermont state representative * Horatio Seymour, U.S. senator * Patty Sheehan, golfer * William Slade, U.S. congressman and 17th governor of Vermont * David Allen Smalley, judge * John Wolcott Stewart, U.S. senator and congressman * Allen R. Sturtevant, Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court * Charles M. Swift, lawyer, businessman, founder of

Meralco The Manila Electric Company, also known as Meralco (, , stylized in uppercase), is an electric power distribution company in the Philippines. It is Metro Manila's only electric power distributor and holds the power distribution franchise for 3 ...

and several railroads * John P. Townsend, financier of the Gilded Age * Arthur Trudeau, Army general and

Ufologist Ufology, sometimes written UFOlogy ( or ), is the investigation of unidentified flying objects (UFOs) by people who believe that they may be of extraordinary claims, extraordinary origins (most frequently of extraterrestrial hypothesis, extrate ...

* Steve Vaillancourt, New Hampshire state legislator * James M. Warner, manufacturer and general * Emma Willard, women's rights advocate and school founder * John Willard, U.S. Marshal for Vermont, husband of Emma Willard * Isaac Wilson, U.S. congressman

In popular culture

* A shot of Middlebury appears as stock footage, standing in for a fictional Pennsylvania town, in the ''

30 Rock ''30 Rock'' is an American satire, satirical sitcom television series created by Tina Fey that originally aired on NBC from October 11, 2006, to January 31, 2013. The series, based on Fey's experiences as head writer for ''Saturday Night Live' ...

'' episode " Episode 210". * The bridge over the waterfall appears in the film '' Me, Myself & Irene''. * A shot of the Waybury Inn in East Middlebury was used in the opening of the TV series '' Newhart''. Scenes of the town are also occasionally shown in the series. * G. Stone Motors, a new and used car dealership in Middlebury, was the subject of Game Show Network's television series '' Family Trade'' in 2013.

References

External links

*

– Maps of Middlebury and the region from the 18th and 19th centuries (hosted by Middlebury College) {{Authority control County seats in Vermont Populated places established in 1761 Towns in Addison County, Vermont Towns in Vermont