Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
The best of Brookfield’s subject grades is an A for history; the weakest is a D for walkability. Brookfield’s average trip to work is 37 minutes, above both Vermont’s towns (23 minutes) and U.S. towns (25 minutes). On walkability, just 6 of Vermont’s 172 towns do worse. Its National Register listings include Brookfield Village Historic District and Stratton's Inn. Brookfield has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Brookfield beats most towns.
Census counts: 419 in 1790, a low of 419 in 1790, 1,244 in 2020. The archive holds 10 old photos and papers going back to 1928 and 3 maps from 1924 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Vermont), ordered by how far Brookfield is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Brookfield, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Brookfield.
4.6% of Brookfield working residents work locally, where Vermont’s towns sit at 16% and U.S. towns at 8%. Jobs based in Brookfield grew to 209 in 2023, 63 more than in 2013. Brookfield’s median household income is $99,000.
| Brookfield | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 4.6% | 16% | 8% |
| Median household income | $99,000 | $80,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 6.3% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Orange Southwest Unified Union School District #59. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brookfield SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 89 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within VT on state tests and graduation
Brookfield beats the Vermont average on 1 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 27% of Brookfield adults sleep under 7 hours. Only 4 of the 72 Vermont towns we compare have a lower share of adults who binge drink than Brookfield.
| Brookfield | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 30% | 36% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 16% | 16% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 16% | 17% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 30% | 35% |
| What stands out | Brookfield | VT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.3% | 10.1% |
| More adults with arthritis | 32.4% | 27.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Adults 18 to 34 are 10% of residents (22% statewide); people 65 and older are 30% of residents (22% statewide). 45% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Brookfield.
| Brookfield | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 47 years | 43.7 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 45% | 40% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 19% | 19% | 22% |
46% women, 54% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±10 points. Across Vermont, 50.4% of residents are women.
| Brookfield | VT | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 12.7% | 9.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 6.1% | 8.8% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 2.8% | 10% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 7.3% | 11.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 17.1% | 12.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 13.3% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 11% | 14.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 22.6% | 13% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.1% | 8.5% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3.9% | 5.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 32.6% | 26.8% | 26% |
| Some college | 9.2% | 15.8% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 9.1% | 8.6% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 25.6% | 25.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 19.7% | 18.6% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,300, single groups can be off by several points
Brookfield has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The July high in Brookfield is 78°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
4.9 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves. Only 1 of the 72 Vermont towns we compare have a lower trail density than Brookfield. The biggest park or preserve is Allis State Park, at 477 acres.
| Brookfield | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.6 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 6% | 14% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Allis State Park | 0.4 mi | 477 |
| 2. Ainsworth State Park | — | 323 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The typical Brookfield home is worth about $369,000, down 5.4% in a year, 6% below the Vermont typical home.
| Brookfield | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 88% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $975 a month | $1,135 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 54% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Brookfield. Close and well known come first.
38 mi MountainMount Mansfield
30 mi Ski areaKillington Resort184 runs · 3,031 ft vertical
18 mi Ski areaSugarbush Resort142 runs · 2,569 ft vertical
36 mi Ski areaStowe Mountain Resort144 runs · 2,390 ft vertical
24 mi National forestGreen Mountain National Forest
21 mi Ski areaMad River Glen77 runs · 1,998 ft verticalMount Mansfield: Original uploader was Calzarette (Joe Calzarette) at en.wikipedia, Public domain · Killington Resort: NHRHS2010, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Sugarbush Resort: Mrtrek1701 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Stowe Mountain Resort: Stevage, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Green Mountain National Forest: Brian W. Schaller, FAL · Mad River Glen: Jrclark (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0
3 within 15 miles of the center of Brookfield
About 3 of every 100 Brookfield residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Vermont.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
4 places in Brookfield on the National Register of Historic Places.
3 notable people were born in Brookfield.
Town in Vermont, United States
Brookfield is a town in Orange County, Vermont, United States. It was created by Vermont charter on August 5, 1781. The population was 1,244 at the 2020 census. Brookfield is best known for its floating bridge which spans Sunset Lake buoyed by pontoons. The bridge, which is the only floating bridge east of the Mississippi River, was originally built in 1820 by Luther Adams and his neighbors. Sunset Lake is also the site of an annual ice harvesting festival. Brookfield boasts that it has Vermont's oldest continually operating library dating back to 1791. In 2006, Brookfield was one of the first American towns to have its citizens pass a resolution endorsing the impeachment of President Georg…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
That is 4.4 years of the area's median household income ($83,269 across the Lebanon-Claremont, NH-VT area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
3 notable people were born here, including George Washington Morse and Austin Cowles.
