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Rutland County, Vermont
RutlandVT CourthouseAndBaptistChurch
Rutland Courthouse
Map of Vermont highlighting Rutland County
Location in the state of Vermont
Map of the U.S
Vermont's location in the U.S.
Founded 1781
Named for Rutland, Massachusetts
Shire Town Rutland
Largest city Rutland
Area
 - Total
 - Land
 - Water

945 sq mi (2,448 km²)
930 sq mi (2,409 km²)
15 sq mi (39 km²), 1.6%
Population
 - (2020)
 - Density

60,572
Congressional district At-large
Time zone Eastern: UTC-5/-4

Rutland County is a county located in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 census, the population was 60,572,[1] making it the second-most populous county in Vermont. Its county seat and most populous municipality is the city of Rutland.[2]

History[]

Castleton state college Woodruff Hall

Castleton University is located in Castleton, Vermont within Rutland County

On 16 February 1781 Rutland County was created from Bennington County.[3] From 26 June 1781 until 23 February 1782, Vermont attempted to annex part of New York east of the Hudson River (the so-called West Union); inhabitants in the area favored Vermont's township form of government, while Vermont hoped to gain bargaining power through expansion.[4] New York did not lose control of the area. For almost seven months Rutland County included part of Charlotte County (now Washington County), New York.[5]

In February 1783 Orange County gained the towns of Brookfield[6] and Randolph[7] and Windsor County gained the towns of Bethel[8] and Rochester[9] from Rutland. On 18 October 1785 Addison County was created from Rutland.[10]

On 27 February 1787 Windsor County gained the town of Stockbridge from Rutland,[11] then on 31 October 1792 Rutland gained from Windsor County when the town of Mount Holly was created from Jackson's Gore and the towns of Ludlow and Wallingford.[12] Windsor County gained Benton's Gore from Rutland on 2 March 1797.[13]

On 25 October 1805 Rutland County gained from Bennington County when the town of Mount Tabor gained from the town of Peru.[14] On 29 October 1806 Windsor County gained from Rutland County when the town of Rochester gained a small area from the town of Pittsfield.[15] On 15 November 1813 the county gained from Windsor County when the town of Pittsfield gained a small area from the town of Stockbridge, a change too small to appear on maps.[16] On 9 November 1814 Addison County gained from Rutland County when the town of Goshen gained from the town of Philadelphia.[17] On 22 October 1822 the county gained from Windsor County when the town of Pittsfield gained a small area from the town of Stockbridge.[18] On 3 November 1823 it gained from Windsor County again when the town of Shrewsbury gained a small area from the town of Plymouth.[19] On 15 November 1824 Windsor County gained from Rutland County when the town of Rochester gained a small area from the town of Pittsfield.[20] On 17 November 1825 Bennington County gained from the county when the town of Dorset gained a small area from the town of Mount Tabor.[21]

On 7 November 1839 the Legislature authorized Addison County to gain a small area from Rutland County when the town of Whiting was to gain from the town of Orwell. But there is no evidence that a change took effect.[22] Addison County gained the town of Orwell from Rutland County on 1 December 1847.[23] On 6 March 1855 Addison County gained another small area from the county when the town of Goshen gained "Clemens Land" from the town of Brandon.[24]

On 10 November 1870 the Legislature authorized Rutland County to gain a small area from Windsor County when the town of Mount Holly was to gain from the town of Weston. But there is no evidence that the change took effect.[25] On 7 April 1880 the county lost to Washington County, New York, when New York gained a small area west of the village of Fair Haven from Vermont due to a change in the course of the Poultney River, a change too small to see on most maps.[26] On 21 November 1884 Windsor County gained a small area from Rutland County when the town of Stockbridge gained Parker's Gore.[27] On 8 October 1895 Windsor County gained from the county when the town of Weston gained from the town of Mount Tabor.[28]

The county experienced the first outbreak of polio in the United States in 1894. Within weeks, 132 persons, mostly children, were paralyzed. An additional 18 had died.[29]

Geography[]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 945 square miles (2,450 km2), of which 930 square miles (2,400 km2) is land and 15 square miles (39 km2) (1.6%) is water.[30] It is the second-largest county in Vermont by area. The primary stream of the county is Otter Creek, which runs through the county from the south to the north.

Adjacent counties[]

National protected areas[]

  • Green Mountain National Forest (part)
  • White Rocks National Recreation Area (part)

Demographics[]

Historical populations
Census Pop.
1790 15,590
1800 23,813 52.7%
1810 29,486 23.8%
1820 29,983 1.7%
1830 31,294 4.4%
1840 30,699 −1.9%
1850 33,059 7.7%
1860 35,946 8.7%
1870 40,651 13.1%
1880 41,829 2.9%
1890 45,397 8.5%
1900 44,209 −2.6%
1910 48,139 8.9%
1920 46,213 −4.0%
1930 48,453 4.8%
1940 45,638 −5.8%
1950 45,905 0.6%
1960 46,719 1.8%
1970 52,637 12.7%
1980 58,347 10.8%
1990 62,142 6.5%
2000 63,400 2.0%
2010 61,642 −2.8%
U.S. Decennial Census[31]
1790–1960[32] 1900–1990[33]
1990–2000[34] 2010–2020[1]

As of the 2010 census, there were 61,642 people, 25,984 households, and 16,018 families residing in the county.[35] The population density was 66.3 inhabitants per square mile (25.6 /km2). There were 33,768 housing units at an average density of 36.3 per square mile (14.0 /km2).[36] The racial makeup of the county was 97.1% white, 0.6% Asian, 0.5% black or African American, 0.2% American Indian, 0.2% from other races, and 1.3% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.1% of the population.[35]

Of the 25,984 households, 25.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.3% were married couples living together, 9.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 38.4% were non-families, and 30.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.81. The median age was 44.3 years.[35]

The median income for a household in the county was $47,027 and the median income for a family was $58,790. Males had a median income of $40,638 versus $34,580 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,426. About 8.1% of families and 11.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.2% of those under age 18 and 8.5% of those age 65 or over.[37]

Politics[]

In 1828, Rutland County was won by National Republican Party candidate John Quincy Adams and by Henry Clay in 1832.

From William Henry Harrison in 1836 to Winfield Scott in 1852, the county would be won by Whig Party candidates.

From John C. Frémont in 1856 to Richard Nixon in 1960, the Republican Party would have a 104-year winning streak in the county.

In 1964, Rutland County was won by Democratic Party incumbent President Lyndon B. Johnson, who became the first Democratic presidential candidate to not only win the county, but to win the state of Vermont entirely.

Following the Democrats' victory in 1964, the county went back to voting for Republican candidates for another 20 year winning streak starting with Richard Nixon in 1968 and ending with George H. W. Bush in 1988, who became the last Republican presidential candidate to win the county.

In 1992 the county was won by Bill Clinton and has been won by Democratic candidates ever since. That said, Rutland County has continued to be relatively close in some presidential elections. In 2000, Al Gore carried Rutland County by just 1.6%; in 2004, Kerry carried it by 4.7%; and in 2016, Hillary Clinton carried it by 3.9% (with a substantial 'other' vote in the 2000 and 2016 elections).

Republicans see greater success at a local level in Rutland County. A majority of the county's legislative seats in both the Vermont House of Representatives and Vermont Senate are held by Republicans. In nine of the ten past gubernatorial elections, the Republican candidate has won the greatest number of votes in Rutland County. Most recently, incumbent Republican governor Phil Scott won 74 percent of Rutland County's votes in the 2020 Vermont gubernatorial election.

United States presidential election results for Rutland County, Vermont[38]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 14,672 43.19% 18,230 53.66% 1,068 3.14%
2016 12,479 42.14% 13,635 46.04% 3,501 11.82%
2012 10,835 37.87% 17,088 59.73% 686 2.40%
2008 11,584 36.64% 19,355 61.22% 678 2.14%
2004 14,440 46.62% 15,904 51.34% 631 2.04%
2000 13,546 46.13% 13,990 47.65% 1,826 6.22%
1996 9,934 36.48% 13,230 48.59% 4,065 14.93%
1992 10,963 35.20% 12,829 41.19% 7,352 23.61%
1988 14,482 55.15% 11,496 43.78% 283 1.08%
1984 15,236 60.98% 9,545 38.20% 204 0.82%
1980 11,142 45.98% 9,596 39.60% 3,496 14.43%
1976 11,565 53.00% 9,868 45.23% 386 1.77%
1972 14,143 62.68% 8,261 36.61% 159 0.70%
1968 10,318 51.26% 9,000 44.72% 809 4.02%
1964 7,165 35.11% 13,241 64.89% 0 0.00%
1960 12,166 56.82% 9,246 43.18% 0 0.00%
1956 14,570 73.83% 5,165 26.17% 0 0.00%
1952 13,980 69.95% 5,970 29.87% 36 0.18%
1948 10,206 60.56% 6,452 38.28% 195 1.16%
1944 9,544 57.30% 7,111 42.70% 0 0.00%
1940 10,829 55.02% 8,798 44.70% 54 0.27%
1936 10,794 52.94% 9,543 46.80% 54 0.26%
1932 10,821 54.24% 8,924 44.73% 206 1.03%
1928 12,621 59.36% 8,609 40.49% 32 0.15%
1924 10,642 74.32% 2,477 17.30% 1,201 8.39%
1920 8,940 73.10% 3,192 26.10% 97 0.79%
1916 5,926 66.35% 2,785 31.18% 221 2.47%
1912 2,999 36.03% 2,079 24.98% 3,246 39.00%
1908 5,643 75.70% 1,542 20.69% 269 3.61%
1904 5,772 77.12% 1,367 18.27% 345 4.61%
1900 5,901 74.66% 1,874 23.71% 129 1.63%
1896 6,794 78.00% 1,661 19.07% 255 2.93%
1892 5,210 66.50% 2,426 30.96% 199 2.54%
1888 6,088 68.57% 2,417 27.22% 373 4.20%
1884 5,096 66.68% 2,253 29.48% 294 3.85%
1880 5,690 69.79% 2,421 29.69% 42 0.52%



Transportation[]

Air[]

The Rutland – Southern Vermont Regional Airport is located just south of Rutland city in North Clarendon. It is a commercial airport providing three flights daily to Boston.

Rail[]

Passenger rail service is provided by Amtrak via the Ethan Allen Express which connects Rutland with Albany and New York City. There are two train stations in Rutland County served by this route: Castleton station and Rutland station.

Bus[]

The Bus Rutland

"The Bus" in Rutland city

The Marble Valley Regional Transit District provides "The Bus" with service to the city of Rutland and the towns of Rutland, West Rutland, Castleton, Fair Haven, Poultney, Proctor, and Killington, as well as commuter service to Ludlow, Middlebury and Manchester.

Premier Coach's Vermont Translines serves Rutland daily with two intercity bus connections between Burlington, Lebanon, New Hampshire and Albany, New York in a partnership with Greyhound.[39] They also serve Wallingford, Brandon, Mendon and Killington along the two routes.

Highway[]

  • US 4 U.S. Route 4 enters Rutland County in Fair Haven from the west. It continues east as a four-lane expressway for 19 miles to Rutland city with 6 exits serving Fair Haven, Castleton, and Rutland. It then continues east from Rutland through Killington into Windsor County.
  • US 7 U.S. Route 7 enters Rutland County from the south in the town of Mount Tabor and continues north through Wallingford and Clarendon to Rutland city. For 10 miles south of Rutland, Route 7 is a divided highway. It then continues north through Pittsford and Brandon before entering Addison County.
  • Vermont 3 Vermont Route 3 is a 7.8 north–south highway that extends north from Rutland Center through Proctor and into Pittsford terminating at US Route 7.
  • Vermont 4A Vermont Route 4A is the old alignment of US Route 4 and parallels that highway from Fair Haven through Castleton before terminating in West Rutland.
  • Vermont 22A Vermont Route 22A is a north–south highway entering the county in Fair Haven from the New York state line and passing through West Haven and Benson before continuing into Addison County.
  • Vermont 30 Vermont Route 30 is a north–south highway entering the county in Pawlet from Bennington County and continuing north through Poultney, Castleton, Hubbardton, and Sudbury before continuing into Addison County.
  • Vermont 31 Vermont Route 31 is a 5.5 mile highway from the New York state line in Wells to the village of Poultney.
  • Ellipse sign 53 Vermont Route 53 is a short north–south highway that extends north from Route 73 in the Brandon village of Forestdale toward Lake Dunmore in Addison County.
  • Vermont 73 Vermont Route 73 is an east–west highway extending from the county line with Addison County through Sudbury and Brandon and then returning to Addison County.
  • Vermont 100 Vermont Route 100 is a north–south highway entering from Windsor County to the south through Killington and then returning to Windsor County.
  • Vermont 103 Vermont Route 103 is a north–south highway entering from Windsor County to the south in Mount Holly and extending north through Wallingford and Clarendon before terminating at Route 7.
  • Vermont 133 Vermont Route 133 is a 22-mile north–south highway completely within Rutland County. It extends north from Pawlet through Middletown Springs and Tinmouth before terminating at Vermont 4A in West Rutland.
  • Vermont 140 Vermont Route 140 is an east–west highway crossing the county east from Poultney through Middletown Springs, Tinmouth, and Wallingford before terminating at Route 103 in Mount Holly.
  • Ellipse sign 144 Vermont Route 144 is a 6.8 mile east–west highway extending from Route 22A in Benson through Hubbardton past Lake Hortonia before terminating at Route 30 in Sudbury.
  • Vermont 149 Vermont Route 149 is an east–west highway extending from the New York state line for only 1.3 miles to Vermont 30 in Pawlet.
  • Vermont 155 Vermont Route 155 is a north–south highway continuing north from Windsor County in the town of Mount Holly and then terminating in Wallingford at Route 103.

Communities[]

City[]

Towns[]

Incorporated village[]

  • Poultney

Census-designated places[]

  • Benson
  • Brandon
  • Castleton
  • Castleton Four Corners
  • Chittenden
  • Danby
  • East Poultney
  • Fair Haven
  • Killington Village
  • Middletown Springs
  • North Clarendon
  • Pawlet
  • Pittsford
  • Proctor
  • Wallingford
  • Wells
  • West Pawlet
  • West Rutland

Other communities[]

  • Belmont, in the town of Mount Holly
  • Florence, in the town of Pittsford
  • Hortonia, in the town of Hubbardton
  • Hortonville, in the town of Mount Holly

See also[]

Footnotes[]

  1. ^ a b "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/rutlandcountyvermont/POP010220. 
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. 
  3. ^ Vermont State Papers, 13:5-6.
  4. ^ Vt. State Papers, 13:45-46; Newton, 83-87; Williamson, C., 101-102.
  5. ^ Vt. State Papers, 3, pt. 2: 67-68.
  6. ^ Vt. State Papers, 13:174.
  7. ^ Vt. Laws 1783 in Vt. State Papers, 13: 191.
  8. ^ Vt. State Papers, 3, pt. 2:155.
  9. ^ Vt. State Papers, 13:183.
  10. ^ Vt. State Papers, 14:33-34.
  11. ^ Vt. State Papers, 14:173-175.
  12. ^ Vt. State Papers, 15:88-90.
  13. ^ McCarty, "Evolution," 122-123; Vt. Laws, Revised and Passed 1797, ch. 6/pp. 129-133.
  14. ^ McCarty, "Evolution," 134; Vt. Laws 1805, ch. 15/pp. 19-20.
  15. ^ Vt. Laws 1806, ch. 28/pp. 36-37.
  16. ^ Vt. Laws 1813, ch. 102/p. 144.
  17. ^ Vt. Laws 1814, ch. 96/pp. 111-112.
  18. ^ Vt. Laws 1822, ch. 37/p. 36.
  19. ^ Vt. Laws 1823, ch. 2/pp. 3-4.
  20. ^ Vt. Laws 1824, ch. 14/p. 16.
  21. ^ McCarty, "Evolution," 140; Vt. Laws 1825, no 18/p. 25; Vt. Laws 1832, no. 25/p. 25.
  22. ^ Vt. Laws 1839, no. 37/pp. 87-88.
  23. ^ Vt. Laws 1847, no. 8/p. 7.
  24. ^ Vt. Laws 1854, no. 61, sec. 3/p. 59.
  25. ^ Vt. Laws 1870, no. 292/pp. 572-573.
  26. ^ Vt. Laws 1876, no. 201/p. 380; U.S. Stat., vol. 21, ch. 49 [1880]/p. 72; Van Zandt, 65.
  27. ^ Vt. Laws 1884, no. 262/p. 270.
  28. ^ "Weston v. Mount Tabor."
  29. ^ Dhruv Khullar (September 8, 2020). "It Will Take More Than a Vaccine to Beat COVID-19". New Yorker. New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/science/medical-dispatch/the-state-of-the-fight-against-covid-19. 
  30. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. http://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/counties_list_50.txt. 
  31. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html. 
  32. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu. 
  33. ^ Forstall, Richard L., ed (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/vt190090.txt. 
  34. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf. 
  35. ^ a b c "DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/DPDP1/0500000US50021. 
  36. ^ "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/GCTPH1.CY07/0500000US50021. 
  37. ^ "DP03 SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/ACS/10_5YR/DP03/0500000US50021. 
  38. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS. 
  39. ^ "VT TRANSLINES BUS SCHEDULE". Vermont Translines. https://www.vttranslines.com/content/schedules/schedules.asp. 

Further reading[]

External links[]

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Coordinates: 43°34′48″N 73°02′12″W / 43.58009, -73.03661


This page uses content from the English language Wikipedia. The original content was at Rutland County, Vermont. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with this Familypedia wiki, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons License.
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