Saxtons River, Vermont
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Saxtons River is an incorporated village in the town of Rockingham in
Windham County, Vermont Windham County is a county located in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 census, the population was 45,905. The shire town (county seat) is Newfane, and the largest municipality is the town of Brattleboro. History Fort Bridgman, Vern ...
, United States. The population was 479 at the 2020 census. For over a hundred years, Saxtons River has been the home of
Vermont Academy Vermont Academy (VA) is a private, co-educational, college preparatory, boarding and day school in Saxtons River, Vermont, serving students from ninth through twelfth grade, as well as postgraduates. Founded in 1876, the campus was listed on ...
, an independent secondary school. Most of the village is a
historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...
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 ...
in 1986 as Saxtons River Village Historic District.


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 village has a total area of 0.5 square mile (1.3 km2), all land.


History

According to Bellows Falls-based historian Lyman Simpson Hayes, writing in 1907’s ''History of the Town of Rockingham'', the first settlement of the area that would become Saxtons River occurred in 1783, when Amos P. Cummings cut down the first trees of an “entirely unbroken wilderness of immense trees of primitive growth.” As late as 1795, there existed only two houses in the village — population growth was extremely slow. A
meeting house A meeting house (also spelled meetinghouse or meeting-house) is a building where religious and sometimes private meetings take place. Terminology Nonconformist (Protestantism), Nonconformist Protestant denominations distinguish between a: * chu ...
was built and the village cemetery established in 1810, and the first
textile mill Textile manufacturing or textile engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful good ...
was opened at the Middle Falls (now officially named Saxtons River Falls) in 1815. The village bounds were determined by the town in 1820, and it was formally incorporated as a village in 1905, which is overseen by a board of trustees elected by registered voters of the Village. By 1828, the village contained the aforementioned meeting house (which by this point was the public school building), a post office, mills of various sorts (
grist Grist is grain that has been separated from its chaff in preparation for grinding. It can also mean grain that has been ground at a gristmill. Its etymology derives from the verb ''grind.'' Grist can be ground into meal or flour, depending on h ...
,
saw A saw is a tool consisting of a tough blade, Wire saw, wire, or Chainsaw, chain with a hard toothed edge used to cut through material. Various terms are used to describe toothed and abrasive saws. Saws began as serrated materials, and when man ...
,
fulling Fulling, also known as tucking or walking ( Scots: ''waukin'', hence often spelt waulking in Scottish English), is a step in woollen clothmaking which involves the cleansing of woven cloth (particularly wool) to eliminate ( lanolin) oils, ...
), a
tannery Tanning, or hide tanning, is the process of treating skins and hides of animals to produce leather. A tannery is the place where the skins are processed. Historically, vegetable based tanning used tannin, an acidic chemical compound derived fr ...
, a
forge A forge is a type of hearth used for heating metals, or the workplace (smithy) where such a hearth is located. The forge is used by the smith to heat a piece of metal to a temperature at which it becomes easier to shape by forging, or to the ...
, a tavern, a distillery, two stores, one law office and forty-five dwellings. By 1907, Saxtons River was a “flourishing village of about nine hundred and fifty inhabitants, with a variety of mills and other industries.” From 1900-1924, Rockingham's two incorporated villages were linked by the Bellows Falls & Saxtons River Railroad, an electric train system. The company created Barbers Park, east of the Saxtons River about halfway between the villages, to which summertime crowds took the trolleys to baseball games and amusement rides. Although Saxtons River village had a long history of industry, much of it had failed by the 1920s. Located mostly inside the Village boundaries, and a strong influence on the character and economy of Saxtons River, is
Vermont Academy Vermont Academy (VA) is a private, co-educational, college preparatory, boarding and day school in Saxtons River, Vermont, serving students from ninth through twelfth grade, as well as postgraduates. Founded in 1876, the campus was listed on ...
, a
private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...
, co-educational high school founded in 1876. Vermont Academy established an annual Winter Carnival early in the 20th century, contributing to the creation of New England's winter recreation culture. Student enrollment is around 230. After a period of decline in the mid-20th century, many of the older buildings, such as the Saxtons River Inn, were restored and rehabilitated. In 1974, the Campbell family (which at that time represented 1/40th of the population of the village according to the ''New York Times'' article "21 Campbells and One Charming Vermont Inn") reopened the aging Saxtons River Inn, "a 1903 relic on Main Street", full of peeling paint and "hoods of abandoned Cadillacs propped up on the sagging porches." After a year-long "kind of super barn raising", with help from the community, the refurbished Inn became a mainstay of the community for decades with a bar, dining room and 10 guest rooms. The Inn has continued to change hands over the years, but still survives. Historic buildings include: *Congregational Church (Main Street), now the Saxtons River Historical Society; 1836, 1871 *Saxtons River Village Building (Upper Main Street); c. 1860, c. 1970 *"Maple Grove," Smith-Bancroft-Neill House (Upper Main Street); c. 1830 and later *Warner Block-Odd Fellows Building (Main Street), now the home of Main Street Arts; c. 1850 *Sabin-Bryant Block (Main and School Street); c. 1865 *Saxtons River Public School (School Street); 1915 *Saxtons River Inn (Main Street and Academy Avenue); 1903 *"The Beehive" (Academy Avenue); c. 1860 *Simonds Store - Saxtons River Village Market (Main Street and Academy Avenue); c. 1870 *Tin Shop or Saxwin Building (Main and Maple Streets); c. 1850 *Baptist Church (Main Street), now Christ's Church, UCC; 1840 *Fuller Hardware Store (Main Street); c. 1830 *Saxtons River Woolen Mill foundation (Maple Street); c. 1847 and later. *Wool Pulling Shop (River Street); c. 1870 *Old South Meetinghouse site (Westminster Street) *Saxtons River Cemetery (off Westminster Street) *Tenney's Lumber Mill (off Westminster Street); 1870 *Thompson Gristmill (Westminster Street); c. 1850


Demographics

As of the 2010 Census, there were 565 people in 210 households in the village. 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 1,130 people per square mile (434.6/km2). The racial makeup of the village was 94.65%
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 ...
, 1.6% Asian, 0.4%
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 ...
, 0.5% from other races, and 2.5% 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 2.85% of the population. In the village, the population was spread out, with 29.3% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 13.1% from 25 to 34, 40.5% from 35 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. Median age was 37.6 years.


Notable people

*
Horace Henry Baxter Horace Henry Baxter (January 8, 1818 – February 17, 1884) was a Vermont businessman who served as Adjutant General of Vermont at the start of the American Civil War. He became President of the New York Central Railroad and was one of the major s ...
, prominent businessman and Adjutant General of the Vermont Militia during the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
* John Butler Smith, 44th
Governor of New Hampshire The governor of New Hampshire is the head of government of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The governor is elected during the biennial state general election in November of even-numbered years. New Hampshire is one of only two states, along w ...
*
Charles C. Tillinghast Jr. Charles Carpenter Tillinghast Jr. (January 30, 1911 – July 25, 1998) was an American business executive. He was chairman of Trans World Airlines and chancellor of Brown University. Biography Tillinghast was born on January 30, 1911, in Saxton ...
, president and CEO (later chairman) of
Trans World Airlines Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1930 until it was acquired by American Airlines in 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles ...
from 1961 to 1976. Chancellor of
Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...
from 1967 to 1978.


See also

*
National Register of Historic Places listings in Windham County, Vermont __NOTOC__ The National Register of Historic Places is a United States federal official list of places and sites considered worthy of preservation. In Windham County, Vermont, there are 100 properties and districts listed on the National Regist ...


References

{{authority control Incorporated villages in Vermont Villages in Windham County, Vermont Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Vermont National Register of Historic Places in Windham County, Vermont