Weston is a town in Windsor County,

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

, United States. The population was 623 at the 2020 census. Home to the Weston Playhouse Theatre Company, it includes the villages of

Weston Weston may refer to: Places Australia * Weston, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra * Weston, New South Wales * Weston Creek, a residential district of Canberra * Weston Park, Canberra, a park Canada * Weston, Nova Scotia * ...

and The Island.

History

Weston was originally the western part of

Andover Andover may refer to: Places Australia *Andover, Tasmania Canada * Andover Parish, New Brunswick * Perth-Andover, New Brunswick United Kingdom * Andover, Hampshire, England ** RAF Andover, a former Royal Air Force station United States * Andove ...

called West Town. Because Markham and Terrible Mountain blocked travel between the town's halves, it was set off and incorporated on October 26, 1799, by the

legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its p ...

. Set among the

Green Mountains The Green Mountains are a mountain range in the U.S. state of Vermont. The range runs primarily south to north and extends approximately from the border with Massachusetts to the border with Quebec, Canada. The part of the same range that is i ...

, the terrain is very rough and mountainous, but the intervales provided good soil for

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people t ...

and

pasturage Pasture (from the Latin ''pastus'', past participle of ''pascere'', "to feed") is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep, or swine ...

. A second village grew at the

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flo ...

cut to divert the

West River West River may refer to: Rivers Canada *West River (Antigonish, Nova Scotia) in Antigonish County, Nova Scotia * West River (Pictou, Nova Scotia) in Pictou County, Nova Scotia * West River (Halifax, Nova Scotia) in Sheet Harbour, Nova Scotia * West ...

power Power most often refers to: * Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work" ** Engine power, the power put out by an engine ** Electric power * Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events ** Abusive power Power may a ...

watermill A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production of ...

s. Called the Island, it developed into a small mill town. By 1859, when Weston's population was 950, industries included ten

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

s, a

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separat ...

, two

tanneries Tanning may refer to: *Tanning (leather), treating animal skins to produce leather *Sun tanning, using the sun to darken pale skin **Indoor tanning, the use of artificial light in place of the sun **Sunless tanning, application of a stain or dye t ...

, one wood-turning mill, one machine shop, one

axe An axe ( sometimes ax in American English; see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood, to harvest timber, as a weapon, and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol. The axe has ma ...

shop, one carding machine, in addition to shops for

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such as gates, gr ...

s, carpenters,

tinsmith A tinsmith is a person who makes and repairs things made of tin or other light metals. The profession may sometimes also be known as a tinner, tinker, tinman, or tinplate worker; whitesmith may also refer to this profession, though the same w ...

wheelwright A wheelwright is a craftsman who builds or repairs wooden wheels. The word is the combination of "wheel" and the word "wright", (which comes from the Old English word "''wryhta''", meaning a worker or shaper of wood) as in shipwright and arkwr ...

s and

shoemakers Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or cobblers (also known as ''cordwainers''). In the 18th century, dozens or even hundreds of masters, journeymen an ...

. Vermont's oldest professional theatre, the

Weston Playhouse Theatre Company Weston Theater Company (formerly known as Weston Playhouse Theatre Company) is a theater company in Weston, Vermont, United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or ...

, was founded in 1935. The Vermont Country Store, a catalogue, retail, and e-commerce business, was established here in 1946 by Vrest and Ellen Orton.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...

, the town has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.57%, is water. The

flows through the town. Weston is crossed by

Vermont Route 100 Vermont Route 100 (VT 100) is a north–south state highway in Vermont in the United States. Running through the center of the state, it travels nearly the entire length of Vermont and is long. VT 100 is the state's longest numbere ...

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2010, there were 566 people, 283 households, and 174 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 geographical ...

was 16.0 people per square mile (6.2/km²). There were 573 housing units at an average density of 16.3 per square mile (5.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.1%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 0.4%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0% Native American, 0.7%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, and 0.9% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 2% of the population There were 213 households, out of which 19.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.2% were married couples living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.5% were non-families. 29.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16 and the average family size was 2.71. In the town, the population was spread out, with 13.8% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 13.6% from 25 to 44, 34.8% from 45 to 64, and 33.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 53.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 108.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $72,692, and the median income for a family was $84,821. Males had a median income of $38,854 versus $22,361 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the town was $36,546. About 2.5% of families and 8.1% 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 t ...

, including 5.4% of those under age 18 and 8.4% of those age 65 or over.

Government officials

As of 2017, Weston's government officials are:

Town Moderator

* Wayne Granquist

Select Board Members

* Denis Benson (Chair) * Jim Linville (Vice Chair) * Ann Fuji'i * Bruce Downer * Charles Goodwin

Sites of interest

* Vermont Country Store * Farrar-Mansur House *

* Kinhaven Music School * Weston Priory

Notable people

Aaron H. Cragin Aaron Harrison Cragin (February 3, 1821May 10, 1898) was an American politician and a United States Representative and Senator from New Hampshire. Early life Born in Weston, Vermont, Cragin completed preparatory studies, studied law, was admit ...

, US congressman and senator * Joseph A. Gilmore, railroad superintendent and 29th

Governor of New Hampshire The governor of New Hampshire is the head of government 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 with bordering Verm ...

Sam Lloyd Sam Lloyd (November 12, 1963 – April 30, 2020) was an American actor and singer, best known for his portrayal of lawyer Ted Buckland on the comedy-drama series '' Scrubs'' and the sitcom ''Cougar Town''. Early life Lloyd was born in Sp ...

, television actor * Mildred Ellen Orton, founder of the Vermont Country Store *

Hiram Sanford Stevens Hiram Sanford Stevens (March 20, 1832 – March 22, 1893) was an American businessman and politician. He served two terms as Arizona Territory's delegate in the United States House of Representatives and three times in the Arizona Territorial Le ...

, US congressman * Syd Straw, Singer & Actor / ResidenceFacebook/Syd Straw page
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References

External links

Town of Weston official website

Wilder Memorial Library

Weston Town Info & Photos from ''Vermont Living Magazine''
{{authority control Towns in Vermont Towns in Windsor County, Vermont