Bennington Vermont History & Facts

Bennington is a town in Bennington County, Vermont, United States. It is one of two shire towns (county seats) of the county, the other being Manchester. As of the 2020 US Census, the population was 15,333. Bennington is the most populous town in southern Vermont, the second-largest town in Vermont (after Colchester) and the sixth-largest municipality in the state, including the cities of Burlington, Rutland, and South Burlington.

The town is home to the Bennington Battle Monument, which is the tallest human-made structure in the state of Vermont. The town has a long history of manufacturing, primarily within wood processing. The town is also recognized nationally for its pottery, iron, and textiles.

First of the New Hampshire Grants, Bennington was chartered on January 3, 1749, by Colonial Governor Benning Wentworth and named in his honor. It was granted to William Williams and 61 others, mostly from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, making the town the oldest to be chartered in Vermont and outside of what is now New Hampshire, though Brattleboro had been settled earlier as a fort. The town was first settled in 1761 by four families from Hardwick and two from Amherst, Massachusetts. They were led by Capt. Samuel Robinson, who camped in the river valley on his return from the French and Indian War.

Prior to the arrival of colonists, the land belonged to the Western Abenaki of the Wabanaki Confederacy. These peoples were indigenous to Ndakinna—also known as Vermont, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Quebec.

There are three historic districts within the town today: Old Bennington, Downtown Bennington and North Bennington. Of these, Old Bennington is the original settlement, dating back to 1761, when Congregational Separatists arrived from Connecticut and from Amherst and Hardwick, Massachusetts. In the early 1800s, Downtown Bennington started developing, and by 1854 the county's population had reached 18,589.

Bennington is located in southwestern Bennington County at 42°53′28″N 73°12′29″W.

To the west is New York State; Pownal is to the south; Shaftsbury is to the north; and Woodford is to the east.

Located in the southwesternmost portion of Vermont, it is geographically closer to the capital cities of Albany, New York; Hartford, Connecticut; and Concord, New Hampshire than to its own state capital, Montpelier.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 42.5 square miles (110.1 km2), of which 42.2 square miles (109.4 km2) are land and 0.27 square miles (0.7 km2), or 0.59%, is water. Bennington is drained by the Walloomsac River and its tributaries, flowing to the Hoosic and then the Hudson River. The town is located along the western edge of the Green Mountains, including Bald Mountain, which occupies the northeastern edge of town. (Its 2,857-foot (871 m) summit is just over the town line in Woodford.) In the southwest part of town is 2,350-foot (720 m) Mount Anthony, part of the Taconic Range.

Famous Peoples From Bennington Vermont

Ethan Allen
(January 21, 1738 [O.S. January 10, 1737] – February 12, 1789) was an American farmer, businessman, land speculator, philosopher, writer, lay theologian, American Revolutionary War patriot, and politician. He is best known as one of the founders of Vermont and for the capture of Fort Ticonderoga early in the Revolutionary War. He was the brother of Ira Allen and the father of Frances Allen.

Allen was born in rural Connecticut and had a frontier upbringing, but he also received an education that included some philosophical teachings. In the late 1760s, he became interested in the New Hampshire Grants, buying land there and becoming embroiled in the legal disputes surrounding the territory. Legal setbacks led to the formation of the Green Mountain Boys, whom Allen led in a campaign of intimidation and property destruction to drive New York settlers from the Grants. He and the Green Mountain Boys seized the initiative early in the Revolutionary War and captured Fort Ticonderoga in May 1775. In September 1775, Allen led a failed attempt on Montreal which resulted in his capture by British authorities. He was imprisoned aboard Royal Navy ships, then paroled in New York City, and finally released in a prisoner exchange in 1778.

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