Cumulative Official Town Count | Unofficial Town Count |
151 | 37 |
Charming farmland, high pastures, dirt roads, and small, close-knit communities describe the towns of CLARENDON, SHREWSBURY, TINMOUTH, & WEST RUTLAND. Additionally, there are a couple of covered bridges, sculpture gardens, and a lovely gorge worth seeing...
CLARENDON
(WITH NORTH CLARENDON, EAST CLARENDON & CLARENDON SPRINGS)
Clarendon, VT is a town of roughly 2,400 (in 2020) which was chartered in 1761 by Benning Wentworth (then-governor of New Hampshire). It is spread out on both sides of Route 7 (a major north-south thoroughfare) and is dotted across its 5 hamlets with farms and Green Mountain views. The Clarendon Gorge is located in East Clarendon and leads you to swimming holes and a waterfall after crossing the Bob Brugmann Suspension Bridge (accessible via a short walk (hike) on the Appalachian Trail/ Long Trail). There's also an historic railroad depot (the East Clarendon Rail Road Station) which was run as a restaurant for a while but is no longer much to see (but is located right near the gorge, so you might pass it anyway). Also in East Clarendon, there is the (newly renovated) Kingsley Covered Bridge (aka Mill River Covered Bridge). Clarendon Springs was a tourist destination due to its restorative waters (the springs), and while you can see the Clarendon House, it is now privately owned, so there are no visits inside. Most of the guests came by train from the South for the healing powers in the water, but the Civil War came and the railroad to nearby West Rutland ended, so that was that. The closest to a town center that I found was in North Clarendon, where there is a post office, town grange, library, and school.
SHREWSBURY
Shrewsbury, VT (pop. 1096 in 2020) is another small agrarian town where farms, views, and dirt roads abound. The town seems to be close-knit given the Meeting House is one of the most prominent buildings and that the general store (Pierce's Store) is now a cooperative store (I can't express how bummed I was that they decided to close the store on the day I visited because it loos GREAT). Just across from the Meeting House is a wonderful farm/ maple store called Smith Maple Crest Farm where you can obviously buy syrup and other maple products, but also hyper-local meat -- beef from their farm, and poultry and pork from other farms in town (or in a neighboring town. (They also sell maple creemees in their freezer -- I can't vouch for it as it was too early in the day for ice cream when I was there, but good to know!) The Brown Covered Bridge was damaged in 2011 from Hurricane Irene and then rebuilt and re-opened in 2016. Down the hill from the Meeting House, on the Cuttingsville part of town are the fire department, library and cemetery (where, in the Bowman family crypt, you can find a stone man which I didn't see because I looked for it in the wrong place (oh well, next time)).
Of note about Shrewsbury... It was home to late U.S. Senator Jim Jeffords. AND, in the mid-1980's the town gained some notoriety when a moose spent a couple of months trying unsuccessfully to court a local farmer's cow (the book, A Moose for Jessica, was inspired by the story). Plus, historically speaking, Shrewsbury was chartered, along with 62 (!) other Vermont towns (including Clarendon, above), in 1761, by Benning Wentworth, then-governor of New Hampshire, under George III.
TINMOUTH
Tinmouth, VT is a small (pop. 553 in 2020) pastoral town in the Taconic Mountains. The views and serenity are stupendous but in terms of a town, there isn't much to see. There is an elementary school (the Mountain School) and some town offices, but no obvious commercial activity other than a farm stand or two. However, like other random cool things one sees while driving around Vermont, there is Table Rock -- an art installation created by Marshall Squier (Tinmouth's fire chief of 30 years, "dairy farmer, justice of the peace and, in his words, "mature forest products extractor" — aka logger." Click here for source). The chairs are approximately eight feet high by almost four feet wide, and the stone itself is five feet high and 15 to 18 feet across.
WEST RUTLAND
West Rutland, VT (pop. 2,214 in 2020), like many neighboring towns, has its origins revolving around the marble industry, which brought artists, immigrant laborers, and the railroad to town. Today, the town's marble roots are on display with the town's incredible public library facade, the Carving studio and sculpture garden, the West Rutland Art Park (sculpture garden), both of which are well worth a visit. The majority of residents live in the southern part of town, on/ near Marble Street, where town hall, the green, memorial to fallen soldiers, and many stores are located (as well as the carving studio). There is plenty of nature to be experienced as well, though, including the West Rutland Marsh, a designated bird area by the Rutland County Audubon Society (it was raining when I was visiting town so did not visit it -- the picture above is from a town website). While the neighboring city of Rutland was chartered in 1761, West Rutland petitioned the Vermont legislature to separate and in 1886, it was incorporated as its own town.
HUBBARDTON
It is worth mentioning that the nearby town of Hubbardton, VT is not included in my list of 251 towns (there are several lists folks use and I know it is on some of them). While I have visited there, I did not visit arguably the most important site there -- the revolutionary battleground monument and battlefield. If you find yourself near West Rutland, have some time to kill, and are a revolutionary war fan, Hubbardton may well be worth a visit. Why, you ask? Well, the Battle of Hubbardton (7 July 1777) is the only battle in the Revolutionary War that was fought entirely within what would become the State of Vermont. While it was considered a tactical win for the British, it was also considered a strategic win for the American forces as it showed the British the strength and savvy of the American troops. There is a Battle Monument at the battleground, and if you time it right, there are battle re-enactments you can witness.
Come back for more of my VT 251 travels!
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