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A+History
History · Hardwick

Hardwick’s post office opened in 1810, and 45% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 95% of U.S. towns · #23 of 71 in Vermont. What drives it

6 places in town are on the National Register, among them three historic districts with 64 buildings between them. Below: 29 old photos and papers, maps from 1898 on, and the census since 1790.

1810first post office
6on the National Register
45%homes built before 1940
29old photos & papers
8famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Hardwick’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Hardwick began

When was Hardwick founded?

1810

The Hardwick post office opened in 1810, the earliest record of the town by name. Four smaller post offices, Lamoilville (1827), South Hardwick (1842) and North Hardwick (1846), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 3 in 17902020 census: 2,920216 years

How historic is Hardwick?

A+

More historic than 95% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Hardwick post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Hardwick’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Hardwick is more historic than 95% of U.S. towns, #23 of 71 in Vermont. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its age lowest.

A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Hardwick’s overall grade.
Founding era1810, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194045.1% of homes (±10.3) · typical VT town 22.4% · U.S. 8.4%A+National Register6 listings, 67 historic buildings, 226 per 10,000 residents · typical VT town 147 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 95%
NewerOlder
Vermont towns of 2,500+ (71)Ahead of 69%

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 Hardwick’s 226 sits above most of its state (72% of Vermont towns have fewer) while its 67 historic buildings outnumber those of 87% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±10.3 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

Founding year: the first post office (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 Hardwick’s past

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

A town in old photos29 old photos, postcards and papers, 1892–1942.Lost villages4 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Hardwick, and 4 old place names are still on the map.A historic districtThe Downtown Hardwick Village Historic District takes in 51 historic buildings.Mapped building by building4 fire insurance maps, 1898 to 1922, drew every building in Hardwick.
★ What stands out · By decade

Hardwick, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s3 items
Hardwick, Vt. 18921892Hardwick, Vt. 1892Hardwick, Vt. 18921892Hardwick, Vt. 1892Hardwick, Vt. 18921892Hardwick, Vt. 1892
1900s–1920snothing 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
1930s13 items
Milk cooperative1936Milk cooperativeMilk cooperative1936Milk cooperativeTownsend headquarters1936Townsend headquartersRoosevelt banner1936Roosevelt bannerUntitled photo, possibly related to: Townsend headquarters1936Untitled photo, possibly related to: Townsend headqua…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Milk cooperative1936Untitled photo, possibly related to: Milk cooperativeUntitled photo, possibly related to: Milk cooperative1936Untitled photo, possibly related to: Milk cooperativeUntitled photo, possibly related to: Townsend headquarters1936Untitled photo, possibly related to: Townsend headqua…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Townsend headquarters1936Untitled photo, possibly related to: Townsend headqua…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Milk cooperative1936Untitled photo, possibly related to: Milk cooperativeUntitled photo, possibly related to: Roosevelt banner1936Untitled photo, possibly related to: Roosevelt bannerUntitled photo, possibly related to: Roosevelt banner1936Untitled photo, possibly related to: Roosevelt bannerUntitled photo, possibly related to: Roosevelt banner1936Untitled photo, possibly related to: Roosevelt banner
1940s13 items
Hardwick, Vermont. Mrs. ALice White at the Victory Store vegetable counter selling donated farm produce, the money from…1942Hardwick, Vermont. Mrs. ALice White at the Victory St…Hardwick, Vermont. J. Blaine Crow, Victory store chairman, selling a bedroom suite to Charles Hogaboom. The money from …1942Hardwick, Vermont. J. Blaine Crow, Victory store chai…Hardwick, Vermont. A few of the hundreds of items being donated and sold at the Victory Store, the money from which goe…1942Hardwick, Vermont. A few of the hundreds of items bei…Some good Vermont hard maple is delivered to the victory store at Hardwick by A.J. Larrabee who is making his donation …1942Some good Vermont hard maple is delivered to the vict…Stock at the Hardwick Victory store overflows at times onto the lawn and even front railing serves as vantage point for…1942Stock at the Hardwick Victory store overflows at time…"The old rocking chair has got him." Everything from crutches to crockery is on display at Hardwick's victory store1942"The old rocking chair has got him." Everything from …A couple of old timers bringing their contributions to the Victory Store at Hardwick. F.T. Taylor, seventy-six (left) a…1942A couple of old timers bringing their contributions t…A big contribution to the Hardwick Victory Store was a Saint Bernard dog donated by Mrs. Irene Smith. She is shown pres…1942A big contribution to the Hardwick Victory Store was …Hardwick's unique victory store, again open for business, is seen here with a few of the hundreds of items which are be…1942Hardwick's unique victory store, again open for busin…Bargains are the keynote at the Hardwick victory store and here are seen some of the women folk who know a bargain when…1942Bargains are the keynote at the Hardwick victory stor…The Hardwick victory store is back in operation and scenes like this are again being witnessed daily. This picture show…1942The Hardwick victory store is back in operation and s…The Hardwick Victory Store is back in operation and scenes like this are again being witnessed daily. This picture show…1942The Hardwick Victory Store is back in operation and s…A couple of old-timers bring their contributions to the victory store at Hardwick. F. T. Taylor, seventy-six, (left) an…1942A couple of old-timers bring their contributions to t…
1950s–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
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Hardwick’s post office has been open since 1810. Four other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hardwick
1810–today
Lamoilville
1827–1842
South Hardwick
1842–1867
North Hardwick
1846–1849
Stephens
1846–1846
East Hardwick
1849–today
18101920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
East HardwickHardwick CenterHardwick StreetMackville
8cemeteries and burying grounds inside Hardwick
Fairview - Saint RobertsHardwick CenterHazen RoadJacob PaineMain StreetMaple StreetNorrisSanborn

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

On the National Register

6 listings protect 67 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
6
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
67
each building in a district counts
first listed
1979
Hardwick Street Historic District
Hardwick Street Historic DistrictDowntown Hardwick Village Historic DistrictCobb SchoolBuilding at 143 Highland AvenueDowntown Hardwick Village Historic DiistrictCaledonia No. 9 Grange Hall, built 1909
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival3
Federal1
Vernacular1
Gothic Revival1
Cape Cod1
Richardsonian Romanesque1
Hardwick Street Historic DistrictFederal
Downtown Hardwick Village Historic DistrictRichardsonian Romanesque
Cobb SchoolGreek Revival
Building at 143 Highland AvenueTenement
All 6 listings
Downtown Hardwick Village Historic DiistrictDistrict · listed 2004Caledonia No. 9 Grange HallBuilding · listed 2017

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

The story

How Hardwick came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Hardwick.

Read it all →

During the Revolutionary War, General George Washington ordered construction of the Bayley-Hazen Military Road to provide access into the interior of Vermont. It would prompt the development and settlement of Hardwick and East Hardwick.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Hardwick, 1808 to 1942

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1808Born hereThomas J. D. Fuller is born here
  3. 1810Post officeThe Hardwick post office opens
  4. 1827Post officeThe Lamoilville post office opens
  5. 1842Post officeThe Lamoilville post office closes
  6. 1842Post officeThe South Hardwick post office opens
  7. 1867Post officeThe South Hardwick post office closes
  8. 1876Born hereGuy W. Bailey is born here
  9. 1878Born hereIra W. Drew is born here
  10. 1892In the archiveHardwick, Vt. 1892
  11. 1898Born hereLee E. Emerson is born here
  12. 20th century
  13. 1909BuiltCaledonia No. 9 Grange Hall is built
  14. 1936In the archiveMilk cooperative
  15. 1938On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  16. 1942In the archiveHardwick, Vermont. Mrs. ALice White at the Victory Store vegetable counter selling donate…
On the map

Hardwick on the map, 1938 to 1986

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

Hardwick on the 1938 USGS mapHardwick on the 1951 USGS mapHardwick on the 1986 USGS map1938Hardwick 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 Hardwick.

Every building

Hardwick, building by building, 1898–1922

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Hardwick fire insurance map, 1898, sheet 11898Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

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.

Hardwick, Vt. 1892
Retake this viewHardwick, Vt. 1892, 1892

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Hardwick, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,50018001850190019502000Peak: 3,201

Between 3 and 3,201 people in every census since 1790.

24 censuses, 1790–2020.

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

Famous people

8 famous people were born in Hardwick

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

See all →
Lee E. EmersonAmerican politician · b. 1898
T
Thomas J. D. FullerAmerican politician · b. 1808
Ira W. DrewAmerican politician · b. 1878
Guy W. BaileyAmerican lawyer · b. 1876
Levi UnderwoodAmerican politician · b. 1821
Catherine Cate CoblentzAmerican children's writer · b. 1897
Help out

Finish Hardwick’s story

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewHardwick, Vt. 1892: 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.

Woodbury1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWalden1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townGreensboro2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWolcott1 historic placeBElmore2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townStannard2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Hardwick’s history

What year was Hardwick founded?

The Hardwick post office opened in 1810, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Hardwick rank for history?

Hardwick is more historic than 95% of U.S. towns, #23 of 71 in Vermont. 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 Hardwick?

6 listings: 3 buildings and 3 historic districts, the Hardwick Street Historic District, the Downtown Hardwick Village Historic District and the Downtown Hardwick Village Historic Diistrict, with 64 contributing buildings. 67 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Hardwick?

45% of Hardwick’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±10.3 points), against a typical 22% for a Vermont town; the median home was built in 1962.

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 (3), the Library of Congress (26), the National Register of Historic Places (6), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.