Putney 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 Windham County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,617 at the 2020 census. The town's historic core makes up the Putney Village Historic District, which is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

History

On December 26, 1753, Colonel Josiah Willard led a proprietors' petition for a Putney charter to be established in the

Equivalent Lands The Equivalent Lands were several large tracts of land that the Province of Massachusetts Bay made available to settlers from the Connecticut Colony after April 1716. This was done as compensation for an equivalent area of territory that was under ...

. The charter was issued that day by 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 ...

– issuer 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 ...

under the authority of King George II of Great Britain. Significant settlement of Putney did not begin until after the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

ended in 1763. The town arose in a large plain on the west side of the

Connecticut River The Connecticut River is the longest river in the New England region of the United States, flowing roughly southward for through four states. It rises 300 yards (270 m) south of the U.S. border with Quebec, Canada, and discharges into Long Isl ...

, above the mouth of Sacketts Brook. A falls on the brook provided water power for early mills, and it is around that point that the main village was formed. Because the town did not have abundant sources of water power, it was largely bypassed by the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution, sometimes divided into the First Industrial Revolution and Second Industrial Revolution, was a transitional period of the global economy toward more widespread, efficient and stable manufacturing processes, succee ...

of the mid-19th century, and remained largely rural in character. The village's character is defined by the Federal and

Greek Revival Greek Revival architecture is a architectural style, style that began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe, the United States, and Canada, ...

styles popular during its most significant period of growth, the late 18th to mid-19th century.

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 26.8 square miles (69.4 km²), of which 26.76 square miles (69.4 km²) is land and 0.04% is water. Putney Mountain is the highest point in the town, rising 1,657 ft above sea level. Putney is bordered by Dummerston to the south,

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

to the north, and Brookline to the west. The

serves as the eastern border of Putney, separating the town from Westmoreland, NH. Putney village is in the southern part of the town, along

U.S. Route 5 U.S. Route 5 (US 5) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway running through the New England states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont. Significant cities along the route include New Haven, Connecticut; Hartford, Conn ...

and Sacketts Brook. Putney is approximately north of Brattleboro and northwest of

Keene, New Hampshire Keene is a city in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 23,047 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 23,409 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. It is the county seat and the only city in ...

Transportation

and

Interstate 91 Interstate 91 (I-91) is an Interstate Highway in the New England region of the United States. It is the primary north–south thoroughfare in the western part of the region. Its southern terminus is in New Haven, Connecticut, at I-95, whi ...

both pass through Putney, which is accessible from Interstate 91 at Exit 4 on the border of Putney and Dummerston. The New England Central Railroad has track rights through the town.

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

's '' Vermonter'' passenger rail line runs through Putney but does not stop in town. The closest stations are Bellows Falls to the north and Brattleboro to the south.

Demographics

As of the 2000

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 2,634 people, 958 households, and 603 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 98.3 people per square mile (37.9/km²). There were 1,049 housing units at an average density of 39.1 per square mile (15.1/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 95.63%

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 ...

, 1.03%

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 ...

, 0.49% Native American, 0.76% Asian, 0.04%

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 ...

, 0.30% from other races, and 1.75% from two or more races.

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 were 1.56% of the population. There were 958 households, out of which 32.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.5% were

married couples 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 ...

living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.0% were non-families. 27.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.99. In the town, the population was spread out, with 22.6% under the age of 18, 16.5% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 23.7% from 45 to 64, and 9.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 108.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $40,346, and the median income for a family was $50,170. Males had a median income of $29,922 versus $25,217 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 $18,576. About 6.2% of families and 8.4% 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 ...

, including 8.5% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over. 04Putgrad

Education

*The Grammar School is an independent day school serving Preschool through Grade 8 with an emphasis on nature-based curriculum. * The Putney School is a private independent co-educational boarding and day high school. * Landmark College is the first college exclusively for students with learning disabilities. * The Greenwood School is a boarding school for boys in grades 6–12 who have been diagnosed with dyslexia and/or related language-based learning disabilities. *Putney Central School is the town's public school for Pre-K through grade 8

Notable people

* George Aiken, US Senator and 64th

Governor of Vermont The governor of Vermont is the head of government of the U.S. state of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of two years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold guberna ...

* Pete Bernhard, musician, member of the band The Devil Makes Three * George M. Darrow, horticulturalist and authority on small fruit and

strawberries The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid plant cultivated worldwide for its fruit. The genus ''Fragaria'', the strawberries, is in the rose family, Rosaceae. The fruit is appreciated f ...

* Fernando Gerassi, painter * Bob Gray, Olympic skier * William B. Gray, United States Attorney for Vermont * William Haile, merchant, manufacturer and politician * Carmelita Hinton, progressive educator and founder of The Putney School *

Reid Hoffman Reid Garrett Hoffman (born August 5, 1967) is an American internet entrepreneur, venture capitalist, podcaster, and author. Hoffman is the co-founder and former executive chairman of LinkedIn, a business-oriented social network used primarily ...

, entrepreneur, founder of

LinkedIn LinkedIn () is an American business and employment-oriented Social networking service, social network. It was launched on May 5, 2003 by Reid Hoffman and Eric Ly. Since December 2016, LinkedIn has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Microsoft. ...

, venture capitalist, graduate of The Putney School *

John Irving John Winslow Irving (born John Wallace Blunt Jr.; March 2, 1942) is an American and Canadian novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter. Irving achieved critical and popular acclaim after the international success of his fourth novel '' Th ...

, author,

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

winner, taught at Windham College while he wrote his first novel * Manon Kahle, actress * Melissa Leo, actress * Prescott Metcalf (1813–1891), was a prominent businessman and the eighth mayor of

Erie, Pennsylvania Erie is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, fifth-most populous city in Pennsylvania and the most populous in Northwestern Pen ...

* Errol Morris, documentary filmmaker,

MacArthur Fellowship The MacArthur Fellows Program, also known as the MacArthur Fellowship and colloquially called the "Genius Grant", is a prize awarded annually by the MacArthur Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to typically between 20 and ...

recipient, Academy Award winner, graduate of The Putney School * John Humphrey Noyes, American utopian socialist * Peter Shumlin, 81st

from 2011 to 2017 * Cyndy Szekeres, children's book author and illustrator who has lived in Putney since 1974 * Jody Williams, 1997

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish language, Swedish and ) is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the Will and testament, will of Sweden, Swedish industrialist, inventor, and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobe ...

laureateNobelPrize.org
, The Nobel Prize in Peace 1997, International Campaign to Ban Landmines , Jody Williams * John Henry Williams, only son of baseball legend

Ted Williams Theodore Samuel Williams (August 30, 1918 – July 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, primarily as a left fielder, for the Boston Red Sox from 193 ...

Notable places

* Theophilus Crawford House, a historic house dating from , added to the National Register of Historic Places ("NRHP") in 1995 * East Putney Brook Stone Arch Bridge, built in 1902, added to the NRHP in 1976 (East Putney) * Putney Village Historic District, the historic core of Putney Village, added to the NRHP in 1986 * Sabin-Wheat Farm, a farmstead establish , added to the NRHP in 2004 * Sacketts Brook Stone Arch Bridge, known locally as the Hi-Lo Biddy Stone Arch Bridge, built in 1905, added to the NRHP in 1976 File:PutneyVT TheophilusCrawfordHouse.jpg, Theophilus Crawford House File:PutneyVT SabinWheatFarm.jpg, Sabin-Wheat Farm File:PutneyVT SackettsBrookStoneArchBridge.jpg, Sacketts Brook Stone Arch Bridge Putney Village Historic District"> File:120 Main Street, Putney, Vermont.jpg, 120 Main Street was built in the Greek Revival style File:Next Stage, former Putney Federated Church, Putney, Vermont.jpg, The former Putney Federated Church, built in 1841,Historical marker on building now houses Next Stage Arts and the Putney Historical Society File:Our Lady of Mercy Roman Catholic Church, Putney, Vermont.jpg, Our Lady of Mercy Roman Catholic Church, formerly the Putney Methodist Church, built in 1842 File:Putney Town Hall.jpg, Putney Town Hall, built in 1871 File:Putney Community Center, Putney, Vermont.jpg, Putney Community Center, built in 1884 as the Putney Baptist Church File:Putney General Store.jpg, Putney General Store, built 1840–1900 File:79 Main Street, Putney, Vermont.jpg, 79 Main Street was built File:Sandglass Theater, Putney, Vermont.jpg, Sandglass Puppet Theater was built in 1915 as a livery stable

References

External links

Official website

Putney Historical Society website
* Putney.net
iPutney.com – local news and events
{{authority control Towns in Vermont Vermont populated places on the Connecticut River Towns in Windham County, Vermont