Official Cumulative Town Count | Unofficial Town Count |
245 | 61 |
The Northeast Kingdom (NEK) towns covered in this VT 251 exploration are small, remote, picturesque, and are located on or near the Connecticut River. MAIDSTONE, GUILDHALL, LUNENBERG, CONCORD, KIRBY, VICTORY, & GRANBY offer visitors beautiful lakes, remarkably scenic farmland, some lovely town greens, as well as lots of dirt roads, some American History, and a covered bridge. Want to talk small? These 7 towns have a combined total of only 3,603 people — 1,254 of whom are in Lunenburg (Essex county’s most populated town).
MAIDSTONE
Although the permanent population of Maidstone, VT is tiny (220 in 2020), Maidstone Lake and State Forest attract many summer vacationers. Maidstone Lake, which is part of Maidstone State Park, was created when glacial ice melted and carved out a deep basin in a preexisting valley approximately 12,000 years ago. This beautiful mountain lake and boreal forest offer excellent fishing as well as secluded and quiet hiking trails (and hunting opportunities for those so inclined). The park closes for the season after Labor Day, which is when we visited. What we experienced was serenity and plenty of lake houses ("camps" in Vermont parlance) being winterized. If you like hunting, fishing, hiking, swimming, boating, and/or camping, this is a place you should consider visiting. The town, which has no center or gas station, was chartered in October of 1761 by Benning Wentworth and is named after Maidstone, England. Historically, the town was known for its productive agricultural land along the Connecticut River, as well as lumber production.
GUILDHALL
Guildhall, VT, another tiny town along the Connecticut River (pop. 262 in 2020), is the county seat (of Essex County), with several of the courthouses located on the large town green. According to a large sign in the town center, Guildhall is the only town in the world with that name. Chartered in 1761 by New Hampshire Governor Benning Wentworth, the original settlers were from Lancaster and Lunenburg, in Massachusetts; they intended Lunenburg to include the area that was later found to become the south part of Guildhall.
LUNENBERG
Lunenberg, VT is the largest town in Essex County, with a population of 1,254 (in 2023). It lies on the western bank of the Connecticut River, and is home to one of the only covered bridges in the area to cross into New Hampshire: the Mount Orne Covered Bridge. One of the earliest settlements in the state, Lunenburg was chartered in 1763 by Benning Wentworth of New Hampshire with the first settlers arriving by canoe from Northfield, Massachusetts, in 1764.
CONCORD
Concord, VT is a quiet, small, rural community (1,141 residents in 2020) between Lunenberg and St. Johnsbury. Should you find yourself in this part of the state and hungry, there aren't many options; but I can vouch that the Moose Look Diner will sate your hunger (at lest before 2pm).
KIRBY
Kirby, VT has impressive vistas and not much else for a visitor to see (other than a few historic cemeteries). In fact. the closest thing to a village in Kirby is an area in the extreme southern part of town where two roads coming from Concord meet at a kind of double four corners. It's another very small town (pop. 575 in 2020) and was chartered in 1790 as Hopkinsville (renamed Kirby in 1808). The first settlers began to arrive around 1792. In the mid-1800s, the town had a church, a school, a cemetery and a few houses. The cemetery is still there as well as the empty schoolhouse (supposedly -- we could not find it). In the northern part of town there is another cemetery and the Town Office Building. The town has never had any village or post office. Today, the residents receive their mail from the Lyndonville, Concord or the East Burke Post Offices. If you're looking for a lovely drive on dirt roads in Vermont, I'd recommend Kirby (especially en route to Lyndonville).
VICTORY
Victory, VT is a remote and TINY town (pop. 70 in 2020) that was granted in November of 1780 and chartered in September of 1781. It was named Victory because there was a general feeling that victory over the British was likely in the Fall of 1780. It’s said that the first inhabitant didn’t live in Victory until 1815, but the town grew quickly thereafter because of the logging industry after the first saw mill was established on Moose River in 1830. Like many other former logging hubs in Vermont, when the trees started to disappear, logging slowed down, and the population dwindled. While the land wasn’t suitable for most forms of agriculture, blueberry fields were able to thrive and made Victory well known for the fruit around the 1860s. Victory was one of the last towns in Vermont to be linked to the electric grid, in 1963. Other than a home totally clad in license plates and a town clerk, there isn't anything to see in "town."
GRANBY
Granby, VT was was chartered in 1761 and was the least populated incorporated town in the state when, after the cold summer of 1816, there were just three families left in in town, and the town gave up its incorporation. It then reorganized and reincorporated in 1822, and the population was up to a whopping 81 in 2020. Like Victory, it was one of the last towns to be linked to the electric grid, in 1963. It once was home to several large logging operations and now the forested landscape supports a good population of deer, moose, and other game. At Granby’s 2019 Town Meeting Day, the public voted to close down the town’s library and turn its assets over to historical preservation, which includes (I assume) the maintenance of Rogers Rangers gravesite, which marks the graves of two Rogers' Rangers who died during the French and Indian War. (Rogers' Rangers was a company of soldiers from the Province of New Hampshire raised by Major Robert Rogers and attached to the British Army during the Seven Years' War. The unit was quickly adopted into the New England Colonies army as an independent ranger company.) Today, one can see an 1885 school house (to become a history museum), a town clerk's office, church, post office (in the form of a lean-to with the town zip code in the back (the mailboxes are covered by the lean-to).
Like many towns in Vermont, these NEK hamlets offer much opportunity to get lost in the state's history, heritage, and dirt roads. I hope you enjoyed this particular foray.
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