Vermont, Town Records, 1850-2005

What is in This Collection?

This article describes multiple collections containing information extracted from town records in Vermont.

Additional records and/or images may be added to this collection in the future.

To Browse This Collection

Vermont, Town Records, 1850-2005

• Bennington County: Winhall
• Caledonia County: Harwdick, Stannard
• Chittenden County: Bolton, Burlington, Charlotte, Hinesburg, Huntington, Milton, Richmond, Shelburne
• Essex County: Lemington, Victory
• Franklin County: Berkshire, Enosburg, Fairfax, Fletcher, Georgia, Highgate, Montgomery, Richford, Sheldon, St.Albans, Swanton
• Grand Isle County: North Hero
• Lamoille County: Belvidere, Cambridge, Eden, Elmore, Hyde Park, Johnson, Morristown, Waterville, Wolcott
• Orange County: Bradford, Braintree, Brookfield, Chelsea, Fairlee, Newbury, Orange, Thetford, Topsham, Tunbridge, Vershire, Washington, West Fairlee
• Orleans County: Morgan, Westfield,
• Washington County: Barre, Cabot, Calais, East Montpelier, Montpelier, Northfield, Roxbury, Warren, Waterbury, Woodbury, Worcester

Vermont, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1732-2005

• Addison County: Addison, Bridport, Bristol, Cornwall, Ferrisburg, Goshen, Granville, Hancock, Leicester, Lincoln, Middlebury, Monkton, New Haven, Orwell, Panton, Ripton, Salisbury, Shoreham, Starksboro, Vergennes, Waltham, Weybridge, Whiting
• Bennington: Bennington, Dorset, Glastenbury, Manchester, Peru, Pownal, Readsboro, Searsburg, Shaftsbury, Stamford, Winhall, Woodford
• Caledonia County: Barnet, Burke, Danville, Hardwick, Kirby, Lyndon, Newark, Peacham, Ryegate, Sheffield, St. Johnsbury, Sutton, Walden, Waterford, Wheelock
• Chittenden County: Bolton, Burlington, Charlotte, Colchester, Essex, Hinesburg, Huntington, Jericho, Milton, Richmond, Shelburne, South Burlington, St. George, Underhill, Westford, Williston, Winooski
• Essex County: Bloomfield, Brighton, Brunswick, Canaan, Concord, East Haven, Granby, Guildhall, Lemington, Lunenburg, Maidstone, Miscellaneous, Norton
• Franklin County: Bakersfield, Berkshire, Enosburg, Fairfax, Fairfield, Fletcher, Franklin, Georgia, Highgate, Montgomery, Richford, Sheldon, St. Albans, Swanton
• Grand Isle: Alburg, Grand Isle, Isle La Motte, North Hero, South Hero
• Lamoille County: Belvidere, Cambridge, Eden, Elmore, Hyde Park, Johnson, Mansfield, Morristown, Sterling, Stowe, Waterville, Wolcott
• Orange County: Brandford, Braintree, Brookfield, Chelsea, Corinth, Fairlee, Newbury, Orange, Randolph, Strafford, Thetford, Topsham, Tunbridge, Vershire, Washington, West Fairlee, Williamstown
• Orleans County: Albany, Barton, Brownington, Charleston, Coventry, Craftsbury, Derby, Glover, Greensboro, Holland, Irasburg, Jay, Lowell, Morgan, Newport, Troy, Westfield, Westmore
• Rutland County: Benson, Brandon, Castleton, Chittenden, Clarendon, Danby, Fair Haven, Hubbardton, Ira, Mendon, Middletown Springs, Mount Holly, Mount Tabor, Pawlet, Pittsfield, Pittsford, Proctor, Rutland, Sherburne, Shrewsbury, Sudbury, Tinmouth, Wallingford, Wells, West Haven, West Rutland
• Washington County: Barre, Cabot, Calais, Duxbury, East Montpelier, Fayston, Marshfield, Middlesex,Montpelier, Moretown, Northfield, Plainfield, Roxbury, Waitsfield, Warren, Waterbury, Woodbury, Worcester
• Windham: Athens, Brattleboro, Brookline, Dover, Dummerston, Grafton, Guilford, Halifax, Jamaica, Londonderry, Ludlow, Marlboro, Newfane, Putney, Rockingham, Somerset, Stratton, Townshend, Vernon, Wardsboro, Westminster, Whitingham, Wilmington, Windham
• Windsor County: Andover, Baltimore, Barnard, Bethel, Bridgewater, Cavendish, Chester, Hartford, Hartland, Ludlow, Norwich, Plymouth, Pomfret, Reading, Rochester, Royalton, Sharon, Springfield, Stockbridge, Weathersfield, Weston, West Windson, Windsor, Woodstock

What Can These Records Tell Me?

The following information may be found in these records:

In addition, these records may also contain Land and Property and Military records.

Collection Content

Sample Images

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  1897 Birth Record

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  1880 Marriage Record

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  1888 Death Record

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  1905 Birth Certificate

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  1888 Marriage Certificate

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  1886 Death Certificate

The records are handwritten or typewritten on preprinted pages which have been bound into volumes. The collection consists of vital records (births, marriages, and deaths), cemetery records, and burial and removal permits. They are arranged by town, then by record type, then by date. The content and completeness of the records varies by town.

The earliest records are called proprietors’ records. After the proprietors sold their lands, the town clerk was the principal local record keeper. Town records generally begin with the founding of a town and are kept to the present.

Town records encompass a wide variety of record types and events and can contain records of births, marriages, deaths, burials, cemeteries, appointments, earmarks, strays (records of stray animals), military records, freemen’s oaths (men eligible to vote), land and property records, mortgages, name changes, care of the poor, school records, surveys, tax lists, town meeting minutes, voter registrations, and warnings out of town.

Births: When a birth occurs, the physician, midwife, or other birth attendant is required to complete a birth certificate and file it with the town clerk in the town of birth within 10 days. For hospital births, it is usually the medical records staff that completes the birth certificate. The completed birth certificate is recorded and filed in the town where the birth took place, and a certified copy is sent to the Health Department.

Deaths: Although a physician is responsible for filing the death certificate, the job may be, and often is, delegated to the funeral director. Most of the information needed to complete the death certificate is obtained from the family of the deceased. A physician, however, must complete the cause of death information and sign the death certificate. The funeral director files the completed certificate with the town clerk who sends a certified copy to the Health Department.

Marriage and Civil Unions: When a couple wishes to marry or establish a civil union in Vermont, they provide a town clerk with the information needed to complete the license. The couple takes the license to an officiant who signs and dates it and returns it to the town clerk. The town clerk records and files the certificate, and sends a certified copy to the Health Department.

The first settlers of Vermont carried on the early New England tradition of recording events at the town level by town clerks/treasurers. These event recordings established and delineated legal/social relationships according to the attendant norms of Vermont, and, generally the United States.

Towns in Vermont also recorded land transactions to document the transfer of land ownership and thereby establish legal rights to land, track responsibilities for taxes, and designate persons to serve in various county functions, such as maintaining public roads in earlier times.

The information given in town records is generally reliable; however, there can be transcription errors in records that undergo this copying process. The vital records are incomplete before mandatory registration began in 1857.