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A+History
History · Arlington

Arlington dates to 1761, and 31% of its homes were built before 1940

Among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns. What drives it

2 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 325 buildings between them. Below: 15 old photos and papers, maps from 1894 on, and the census since 1790.

1761founded
2on the National Register
31%homes built before 1940
15old photos & papers
7famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Arlington’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Arlington began

When was Arlington founded?

1761

Arlington dates its founding to 1761 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). It appears in the first U.S. census, 1790.

First census: 991 in 17902020 census: 2,457265 years

How historic is Arlington?

A+

Among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1805.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Arlington’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Arlington is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs put Arlington near the top nationally; its National Register listings ranks highest.

A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Arlington’s overall grade.
Founding era1761, from Wikidata: founded before 1776, an older era than 96% of U.S. townsA+Homes built before 194031.3% of homes (±7.6) · typical VT town 22.4% · U.S. 8.4%ANational Register2 listings, 325 historic buildings, 1,251 per 10,000 residents · typical VT town 147 · U.S. 2.4A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Among the top 1%
NewerOlder

Vermont towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Vermont town has 147 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Arlington’s 1,251 sits above most of its state (98% of Vermont towns have fewer) while its 325 historic buildings outnumber those of 96% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.6 points). Two sources give 1761.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Arlington’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A historic districtThe Arlington Village Historic District takes in 169 historic buildings.Shrank, then grewLost a third of its people between 1800 and 1840, then more than doubled.On the map since 18944 editions of the USGS map, 1894 to 1997. Watch Arlington change.A town in old photos15 old photos, postcards and papers, 1894–1970.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

2 listings protect 325 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
325
each building in a district counts
first listed
1973
Arlington Green Covered Bridge
Arlington Green Covered BridgeArlington Village Historic DistrictEast Arlington Village Historic District
DistrictsStructures

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival2
Colonial Revival2
Federal1
Queen Anne1
Arlington Green Covered BridgeStructure
Arlington Village Historic DistrictFederal
East Arlington Village Historic DistrictGreek Revival

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Arlington, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,500180018501900195020001,597 in 1800Low: 1,035

Lost a third of its people between 1800 and 1840, then more than doubled.

24 censuses, 1790–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Arlington’s Wikipedia page.

On the map

Arlington on the map, 1894 to 1997

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Arlington. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Arlington on the 1894 USGS mapArlington on the 1900 USGS mapArlington on the 1967 USGS mapArlington on the 1997 USGS map1894Equinox sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Arlington.

The story

How Arlington came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Arlington.

Read it all →

The town of Arlington was chartered July 28, 1761, by New Hampshire Governor Benning Wentworth, as part of the New Hampshire Grants. In 1777, Arlington became the first capital of the Vermont Republic.

Among the first settlers in Arlington were Captain Jehiel Hawley and his family, who had settled there by 1764. They were Anglicans and had fled Roxbury, Connecticut, because of the oppressive requirements of the established Congregational church. At a Proprietor's meeting in 1764, the town voted to give 50 acres (20 hectares) of land to any man who would set up a gristmill in what is now East Arlington. This offer was accepted by Remember Baker (first cousin of Ethan Allen), who built a grist and sawmill.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Arlington, 1761 to 2020

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 18th century
  2. 1761
    FoundingArlington is established
  3. 1784Born hereAugustus Young is born here
  4. 1797Born hereGideon Hard is born here
  5. 19th century
  6. 1805Post officeThe Arlington post office opens
  7. 1810Born hereJunius Brutus Stearns is born here
  8. 1832Post officeThe West Arlington post office opens
  9. 1867Post officeThe East Arlington post office opens
  10. 1889Born hereChick Evans is born here
  11. 1894In the archiveThomas Canfield 001
  12. 1894On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  13. 20th century
  14. 1902Post officeThe West Arlington post office closes
  15. 1908In the archive3904 VT Route 7A, Arlington, VT - July 8, 1908
  16. 1930In the archiveCovered bridge
  17. 1970In the archiveARLINGTON GREEN COVERED BRIDGE
  18. 21st century
  19. 2020CensusPopulation peaks at 2,457
By decade

Arlington, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1970s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s–1930s13 items
Thomas Canfield 0011894Thomas Canfield 0013904 VT Route 7A, Arlington, VT - July 8, 190819083904 VT Route 7A, Arlington, VT - July 8, 1908Covered bridge1930Covered bridgeSmith-Canfield House, East side of State Route 7, south of intersection with State Route 3131933Smith-Canfield House, East side of State Route 7, sou…Smith-Canfield House, East side of State Route 7, south of intersection with State Route 3131933Smith-Canfield House, East side of State Route 7, sou…Vermont farm near Arlington1939Vermont farm near ArlingtonBarn on U.S. 7 near Arlington, Vermont1939Barn on U.S. 7 near Arlington, VermontGraveyard along U.S. No. 7 near Arlington, Vermont1939Graveyard along U.S. No. 7 near Arlington, VermontChurch along U.S. No. 7 near Arlington, Vermont1939Church along U.S. No. 7 near Arlington, VermontStone quarry on U.S. 7 near Arlington, Vermont1939Stone quarry on U.S. 7 near Arlington, VermontStone quarry along U.S. No. 7 near Arlington, Vermont1939Stone quarry along U.S. No. 7 near Arlington, VermontUntitled photo, possibly related to: Graveyard along U.S. No. 7 near Arlington, Vermont1939Untitled photo, possibly related to: Graveyard along …Untitled photo, possibly related to: Stone quarry along U.S. No. 7 near Arlington, Vermont1939Untitled photo, possibly related to: Stone quarry alo…
1940s–1960snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
1970s1 item
ARLINGTON GREEN COVERED BRIDGE1970ARLINGTON GREEN COVERED BRIDGE
1980s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Date unknown1 to date
Smith-Canfield HouseDate?Smith-Canfield House
Today9 recent
2025-09-16 15 08 14 "Welcome to Arlington" sign along southbound Vermont State Route 7A in20252025-09-16 15 08 14 "Welcome to Arlington" sign along…2025-09-16 15 08 10 "Welcome to Arlington" sign along southbound Vermont State Route 7A in20252025-09-16 15 08 10 "Welcome to Arlington" sign along…ArlingtonVermontbanner2018ArlingtonVermontbanner2017-09-10 16 37 59 View north along Historic Vermont State Route 7A at its southern junction with Vermont State Route …20172017-09-10 16 37 59 View north along Historic Vermont…2017-09-10 16 35 49 View east along Vermont State Route 313 at Warm Brook Road in20172017-09-10 16 35 49 View east along Vermont State Rou…West Arlington Bridge (1)2015West Arlington Bridge (1)Downtown-arlington-vt2009Downtown-arlington-vtBattenkill in2008Battenkill inArlington vt highlight2004Arlington vt highlight
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Thomas Canfield 001
Retake this viewThomas Canfield 001, 1894

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Arlington’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

7 famous people were born in Arlington

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
A
Augustus YoungAmerican politician · b. 1784
J
Junius Brutus StearnsAmerican artist · b. 1810
C
Chick EvansMajor League Baseball pitcher · b. 1889
Gideon HardAmerican politician · b. 1797
L
Leroy LawrenceAmerican politician · b. 1908
B
Bill MogeAmerican sports coach · b. 1911
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Arlington’s post office has been open since 1805. Another post office, West Arlington, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Arlington
1805–today
West Arlington
1832–1902
East Arlington
1867–today
18001910today
Hamlets and corners on the map
East ArlingtonWest Arlington
7cemeteries and burying grounds inside Arlington
EvergreenGuber FarmLe Barron - Harrington FarmMattesonRhoda BlowersSaint JamesWest Arlington

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Arlington’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewThomas Canfield 001: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

SunderlandIts storyBShaftsbury6 historic placesASandgateIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Arlington’s history

What year was Arlington founded?

In 1761, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Arlington’s post office opened in 1805, and the first U.S. census counted 991 people here in 1790.

How does Arlington rank for history?

Arlington is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Arlington?

2 listings: 2 historic districts, the Arlington Village Historic District and the East Arlington Village Historic District, with 325 contributing buildings, and 1 structure. 325 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Arlington?

31% of Arlington’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.6 points), against a typical 22% for a Vermont town; the median home was built in 1966.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (15), the Library of Congress (9), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.