Vermont boasts numerous historical landmarks that offer something for all types of travelers, including sites that showcase writers’ homes and one president’s, natural history museums and more.
Windsor’s Old Constitution House is a popular attraction; here delegates met in 1777 to create Vermont’s initial state constitution and this restored tavern has been meticulously recreated to look exactly how it did then.
Mount Independence State Historic Site
During the Revolutionary War, Lake Champlain played a pivotal role in shaping America. Once known as Rattlesnake Hill, its fate as an independent nation rested upon this rocky promontory; later rechristened when President Thomas Jefferson read out his Declaration of Independence at Fort Independence nearby in 1776. Here the defenders constructed one of the largest military complexes during this war including shore batteries designed to block naval passage up Lake Champlain; fortified fighting positions; an expansive hospital; living quarters; military engineers Jeduthan Baldwin and Tadeusz Kosciusko designed this complex three-level system to protect themselves from British advances from Canada across Lake Champlain into America.
Barre is home to President Calvin Coolidge’s birthplace and family home; as well as being home to restored structures such as his farm, general store, schoolhouse, cheese factory and church – all designed to reflect life during his childhood years. Group tours can be organized upon request while admission remains free.
Chimney Point State Historic Site
Chimney Point in Vermont stands as an important location. A museum dedicated to Native American, French colonial and early American history can be found there; millennia of Native American fishing, hunting and camping has occurred here over time; as well as being used as an important military location during the Revolutionary War between Britain and France.
The museum features an on-site tavern dating back to 1785, old ferry landings, indoor and outdoor exhibits as well as being part of the state’s African American Heritage Trail with an exhibit dedicated to Pullman porters who worked for railroads but were not officially acknowledged as black Americans until after 1960.
Vermont boasts numerous house museums to visit, such as the Greek Revival residence of Vermont senator Justin Smith Morrill who wrote both 1862 and 1890 Morrill Land-Grant College Acts, respectively. Don’t miss the chance to see Shelburne Farms; an active farm with an exquisite mansion that serves as both cheese shop and cheese museum!
Hildene
Hildene offers an insight into Vermont’s historic past. This Colonial Revival estate was the summer residence of Robert Lincoln (portrayed by Joseph Gordon-Levitt in 2012 film Lincoln). Surrounded by mountain scenery and boasting 14 buildings such as welcome center, carriage barn, cheese dairy, observatory gardens 1903 Pullman Palace Car Sunbeam Hildene Farm as well as miles of trails this is truly a gem in Vermont!
The grounds also boast a working water-powered mill, providing visitors with an opportunity to watch as grain is processed. For those preferring an even more guided experience, Vermont Estate offers tours of their central property. Don’t forget Vermont is famous for its covered bridges – you’ll find over 100 per square mile! Some have been beautifully restored and can even be visited.
Vermont State House
Vermonters decided after 14 years with an itinerant government to construct a permanent State House. There was considerable debate regarding which site should be selected, with Windsor, Rutland, Middlebury, and Burlington each having strong supporters; ultimately Montpelier emerged victorious on account of its strategic location and willingness to assist in financing construction costs.
Ammi B. Young presented proposals in 1831 for a more substantial structure that featured Greek Revival architecture but quickly outgrew it. Although his style differed significantly from his brick buildings at Dartmouth College, his new Vermont State House nonetheless conveyed nineteenth-century ambitions.
Since the early 1980s, restoration work has reversed any changes deemed detrimental to its historic integrity, such as repair and reproduction of ormolu gas chandeliers, reproduction of gilded stenciling and restoration of historic decorative schemes. Rooms within this building feature American Empire, Renaissance Revival and Rococo Revival styles of furnishings; Vermont is one of only 14 states where elections for their bicameral General Assembly occur on a two-year cycle basis.
