Grafton, VT 【Charming Small Towns in Vermont】

In the early 19th century, sheep raising became popular and multiple woolen mills sprang up along the branches of the Saxtons River. Soapstone was quarried on nearby Bear Mountain. The town became a notable stagecoach hub for traffic across the Green Mountains into Albany, New York. One inn from that era, "the Old Tavern," was founded in 1801. It remains one of the oldest continually operating hotels in the United States. Grafton had a population of almost 1,500 just before the American Civil War. The town suffered severe losses during the Civil War. Local cemeteries in the village hold many tombstones of casualties from the Battle of Gettysburg. After the war, the community declined in population. The soapstone quarry was depleted and closed late in the 19th century. Around the time of the Great Depression, the town's population was less than 400. In the 1960s the Windham Foundation was established to help restore the village. It purchased the Old Tavern and many residences in the area. The foundation also established an artisanal cheese business, the Grafton Village Cheese Company, and built a world-class cross-country skiing center at Grafton Ponds that offers a popular mountain biking program for children in the summer months. The restoration efforts attracted new residents from metropolitan New York and Boston. As of the census of 2000, there were 649 people, 291 households, and 190 families residing in the town. The population density was 16.9 people per square mile. Wikipedia 00:00 Houghtonville Rd, Grafton / Vermont Route 121 00:32 Grafton Congregational Church and Chapel 00:48 Main St, Grafton / VT-121 00:51 Grafton Inn 00:57 Grafton Town Hall / Post Office /Townshend Rd 01:01 Grafton Historical Society (Museum) 01:11 Grafton Library 01:22 Saxtons River 01:27 Main St / VT-35 01:29 Village Garage 03:20 Grafton Fire Department 04:46 Kidder Hill Rd 05:22 Kidder Covered Bridge, built in 1870, National Register of Historic Places 05:45 The bridge was replaced with a new wooden (covered) structure in April 1995 06:29 Pleasant St 06:43 Vermont Museums-Mining & Minerals 👉︎ 07:14 Grafton Rd 07:24 Nature Museum 07:57 0.2 miles to Grafton Village Cheese Company 09:22 Chester Rd / VT-35