Vernon 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 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 ...

, in the United States. The population was 2,192 at the 2020 census. Vernon is the site of the now-defunct Vermont Yankee, the state of

's only

nuclear power plant A nuclear power plant (NPP), also known as a nuclear power station (NPS), nuclear generating station (NGS) or atomic power station (APS) is a thermal power station in which the heat source is a nuclear reactor. As is typical of thermal power st ...

, which closed in December 2014.

History

The town was chartered in 1672 as part of the Massachusetts Grant. In 1736 the area was granted by Massachusetts as part of Fall Town, and in 1753 the area was granted as Hinsdale. When 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 ...

was established as a boundary, two separate towns were created: Hinsdale, New Hampshire and Hinsdale, Vermont. The people who lived in Hinsdale, Vermont wanted a separate name, and in 1802 the Vermont legislature changed the town's name to Vernon. The name is said to have been chosen after President George Washington's plantation home,

Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is the former residence and plantation of George Washington, a Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States, and his wife, Martha. An American landmar ...

. Fort Bridgman, in Vernon, was burned in 1755, a casualty of 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 ...

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 , of which is land and (3.15%) is water. Vernon lies on the southern and eastern Vermont borders, north of

Franklin County, Massachusetts Franklin County is a nongovernmental county in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. At the 2020 census, the population was 71,029, which made it the least populous county on the Massachusetts mainland, and the third leas ...

, and west of

Cheshire County, New Hampshire Cheshire County is a County (United States), county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 76,458. Its county seat is the city of Keene, New Hampshire, ...

. The town is bordered by Brattleboro to the north, Guilford to the west, Hinsdale, New Hampshire, to the east, and the towns of

Bernardston, Massachusetts Bernardston () is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 2,102 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Falls Fight Township Bernardston, ...

, and

Northfield, Massachusetts Northfield is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. Northfield was first settled in 1673. The population was 2,866 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The Connectic ...

to the south. The town hall lies south of downtown Brattleboro, north-northeast of Greenfield, southwest of Keene, and west-northwest of

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

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, Vernon 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 2000, there were 2,141 people, 741 households, and 574 families living 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 . There were 784 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.60%

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 ...

, 0.28%

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 ...

, 0.19% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.05%

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 ...

, and 0.75% 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 0.84% of the population. There were 741 households, out of which 37.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.7% 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, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.5% were non-families. 17.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.76 and the average family size was 3.12. In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.2% under the age of 18, 5.5% from 18 to 24, 27.7% from 25 to 44, 26.2% from 45 to 64, and 13.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males. The median income for a household in the town was $49,688, and the median income for a family was $55,625. Males had a median income of $35,845 versus $25,139 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 $19,720. About 2.5% of families and 2.8% 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 3.3% of those under age 18 and 2.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Vernon is served by the Windham Southeast Supervisory Union. Vernon Elementary School is a public school located in Vernon and serves kindergarten to sixth grade. There is one public middle school, the Brattleboro Area Middle School (BAMS), and one public high school, the Brattleboro Union High School (BUHS). There is also a career development center, the Windham Regional Career Center.

Notable people

* Karen Carroll, 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 ...

* George Howe,

State's Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

of Windham County,

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

for Vermont, 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 ...

Jonathan Hunt Jonathan Hunt may refer to: * Jonathan Hunt (New Zealand politician) (1938–2024), politician from New Zealand * Jonathan Hunt (Vermont congressman) (1787–1832), U.S. Representative from Vermont * Jonathan Hunt (Vermont lieutenant governor) (1738 ...

, US congressman

Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant

The town is the site of the now-closed Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant, which shut down on December 29, 2014.

References

External links

Town of Vernon official website

{{authority control Towns in Vermont Vermont populated places on the Connecticut River Towns in Windham County, Vermont