Norwich, Vermont
| Norwich, Vermont | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
 Location in Windsor County and the state of Vermont. |
|
 Location of Vermont within the US |
|
| Coordinates: 43°43′49″N 72°18′11″W / 43.73028°N 72.30306°WCoordinates: 43°43′49″N 72°18′11″W / 43.73028°N 72.30306°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Vermont |
| County | Windsor |
| Chartered | 1761 |
| Area | |
| • Total | 44.7 sq mi (115.7 km2) |
| • Land | 44.4 sq mi (115.1 km2) |
| • Water | 0.2 sq mi (0.6 km2) |
| Elevation | 531 ft (274 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 3,414 |
| • Density | 76/sq mi (30/km2) |
| Time zone | EST (UTC−5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC−4) |
| ZIP code | 05055 |
| Area code(s) | 802 |
| FIPS code | 50-52900 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1462166 |
| Website | www |
Norwich is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, in the United States. The population was 3,414 at the 2010 census. Home to some of the state of Vermont's wealthiest residents, the municipality is a commuter town for nearby Hanover, New Hampshire across the Connecticut River. The town is part of the Dresden School District, the first interstate school district in the United States, signed into law by President John F. Kennedy.
The boundaries of Norwich were established on July 4, 1761, when Governor Benning Wentworth of New Hampshire defined the boundaries of townships in Vermont. The first settlers reached the area in 1763 and began to clear the wilderness and erect the first hand-hewn log buildings, wintering over for the first time in 1765. Early settlements occurred along the Ompompanoosuc River. Later, the current village site became settled. The first town meeting occurred in April 1768. The first Congregational church was founded in 1770 and a structure built in 1778. The population grew from 206 in 1771 to 1,158 in 1791 and 2,316 in 1830.
The town was named after Norwich, Connecticut, the state from which the first settlers originated. In the original charter, the name was spelled "Norwhich", but the additional 'h' was dropped shortly after the town was chartered. Originally pronounced "Norritch" (similar to the English pronunciation of the city of Norwich, England), the town name has in more recent times become more commonly pronounced "Nor-wich".
In 1819 native son, Alden Partridge, a former Superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, founded the private "American Literary, Scientific and Military Academy" in Norwich. He hoped to establish a new "American system" for training cadets that included both humanities and science topics in the curriculum, in addition to military science. In his six years of Norwich residency, Partridge achieved an academy population of nearly 500 "cadets". He moved that school back to Middletown, Connecticut, in 1825, but returned in 1835 with a charter from the U.S. Congress to found another military academy, which remained in Norwich until 1866, when it burned to the ground. The school then relocated to Northfield, Vermont, where it exists today as Norwich University.
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