Washington, Vermont

Washington Vermont
Town
Calef Library in Washington
Washington, Vermont
Washington Vermont Location in the United States
Coordinates: 44°5′0″N 72°25′19″W / 44.08333°N 72.42194°W / 44.08333; -72.42194Coordinates: 44°5′0″N 72°25′19″W / 44.08333°N 72.42194°W / 44.08333; -72.42194
Country	United States
State	Vermont
County	Orange
Area
• Total	38.9 sq mi (100.7 km2)
• Land	38.9 sq mi (100.6 km2)
• Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	1,765 ft (538 m)
Population (2000)
• Total	1,047
• Density	26.9/sq mi (10.4/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	05675
Area code(s)	802
FIPS code	50-76750
GNIS feature ID	1462243

Washington is a town in Orange County, Vermont, in the United States. The population was 1,047 at the 2000 census. The town is believed to be named after George Washington, although the town may also be named after Washington, Connecticut as there are records of individuals moving from that town in Connecticut to Vermont around 1766.

During the 1760s and 1770s the territory now known as Vermont was in dispute between New York and New Hampshire, the result of conflicting interpretations of each colony's charter. People moving into the territory, then known as New Connecticut or the New Hampshire Grants, generally settled after purchasing land grants from New Hampshire governor Benning Wentworth.

When the British government resolved the dispute in New York's favor, the colonial government attempted to assert control over the grants and force residents who had purchased land grants from Wentworth to pay a fee and confirm their titles. Many Vermonters resisted, leading to creation of the Green Mountain Boys.

As part of New York's effort to demonstrate control over the grants, in 1770 it chartered the town of Kingsland far from New York in what was then remote Gloucester County. Kingsland had no record of any residents, but was designated as one of two county seats. A log jail and courthouse were constructed at the head of a stream named subsequently named the Jail Branch.

In 1781 the government of Vermont, by then an independent republic, re-chartered Kingsland and named it Washington. The town was uninhabited until 1785, when David Morse obtained title to 100 acres.

By 1792 the town was completely organized, and records for 1794 indicate that there were 32 freemen on its voter checklist.

Centered on the hilltop near the Jail Branch, the town consisted mainly of small sheep farms that produced wool. Between 1820 and 1829 there were two fulling mills and one carding mill in operation, and sheep raising peaked circa 1830. Washington's population peaked at 1400 in 1840, after which there was a steady decline, as wool production decreased due to increasing tariffs and other factors. Most farms and homes around the center of town on the hilltop were abandoned, and the center of town relocated downhill and further north, along the Jail Branch and what is now Vermont Route 110.