Official Town Count (cumulative) | Unofficial Town Count |
131 | 29 |
This edition of the VT 251 forays brings you east from Burlington, to the towns of: SOUTH BURLINGTON, WILLISTON, JERICHO, UNDERHILL, RICHMOND, & ST. GEORGE. The day started in South Burlington & Williston (more utilitarian than charming) and then moved onto greener pastures (literally and figuratively), with smaller towns, some of which offer plenty to see and are absolutely worth a visit.
SOUTH BURLINGTON & WILLISTON
I am lumping South Burlington and Williston together as they represent more or less the Burlington "metro area," if you will. These are large towns (South Burlington is actually a city) with somewhat typical suburban feels, and are not only where lots of folks live, work, and raise their families, but where a lot of people in the Burlington area do much of their shopping (think Trader Joes and lots of big box stores). The Vermont Air National Guard is located in South Burlington which makes these towns quite loud when test flights take place.
South Burlington, VT is, in fact, the second largest city in the state (behind Burlington), with a population of just over 20,000 (in 2020). The area of South Burlington was originally granted as part of Burlington township on June 7, 1763 and then was incorporated by charter of the State of Vermont as a separate town with the name South Burlington in 1865, later becoming an incorporated city in 1971. It is home to the Ben & Jerry's corporate headquarters as well as Vermont's largest mall, University Mall (which is not thriving and in fact feels sad, in my opinion). Also, Burlington's airport (BTV) is located in South Burlington.
While Williston, VT was originally rural/ farmland, it is now an example of how Vermont does suburban sprawl. That is, there are still 19th century brick buildings and lovely homes, as well as built-up areas with homes with views, multi-family housing units, and lots of chain stores (like Ulta, Best Buy, LL Bean, etc). Thomas Chittenden, the President of the Vermont Republic, and first governor of the state had his home in Williston and is buried there (you can visit a memorial to him in the central cemetery there if you want).
JERICHO (& JERICHO CENTER)
Jericho, VT is a country town of roughly 5,000, and well worth a visit. It is home to the only snowflake museum/ exhibit I know of in the world (located in the Old Chittendon Mill, built in 1855), an homage to Wilson Bentley, a local who spent his life photographing and studying the wonder of snowflakes and who eventually became known as Snowflake Bentley. Plus, the town has one of the oldest continuously running country/ general stores in the state, which celebrated its 200th anniversary in 2007 and has delicious sandwiches and kombucha on-tap (of course!). On top of that, there are wonderful chocolate and maple stores to satisfy anyone with a sweet tooth. The town green, just across from the store is a relaxing place for a picnic lunch (of sandwiches purchased in the store) and community get-togethers.
UNDERHILL ( & UNDERHILL CENTER)
Ah, Underhill, VT: rural, charming, quirky, and small (pop. 3,129 in 2020). It is home to Poorhouse Pies, which I recommend VERY HIGHLY for both sweet (fruit and cream) and savory (like pulled pork Mac n cheese, chicken enchilada pie, and quiches) pies. You can also find a lovely town green, sculpture park (with pieces for sale), a barn where you can purchase rocks (?!), an adorable post office, and a quirky general store, Wells Corner Market.
RICHMOND
Richmond, VT is a town of roughly 4,000 (as of 2020) and while it is less than 20 minutes from Burlington, it feels a world away. The town is best known for its (16-sided) round church, a meetinghouse, really, which was built in the early 1800s as a town meeting place and a Protestant church. Today it is used for community and special events. Also in town there is a wonderful farmer's market, fun Main Street (stores and restaurants), beautiful scenery all around, and a yummy brew pub called Stone Corral Brewery, which I would recommend if you find yourself hungry or thirsty and are in the area. The town was incorporated in 1794 and established the next year.
ST. GEORGE
The tiny town of St. George, VT proved a difficult one to find. It is Vermont's smallest town by area (3.6 sq. miles), which seemingly was too small for navigation systems (yes, plural!) to find. But try and try again was the name of the game, and on our second attempt, we found St. George (pop. 794 in 2020), which was chartered in 1763 in honor of King George III, the then reigning monarch of England, and also named after England's patron Saint. Perhaps there is more than the town offices and the gas station to the town, but that's all we saw other than homes, woods, and farmland. And, how awesome is their town welcome sign??!
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