Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Johnson

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
B+History
History · Johnson

Johnson dates to 1792, and 14% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 70% of U.S. towns · #58 of 71 in Vermont. What drives it

6 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 10 old photos and papers, maps from 1887 on, and the census since 1790.

1792founded
6on the National Register
14%homes built before 1940
10old photos & papers
5famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Johnson’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Johnson began

When was Johnson founded?

1792

Johnson dates its founding to 1792 (Wikidata). It appears in the first U.S. census, 1790.

First census: 93 in 17902020 census: 3,491234 years

How historic is Johnson?

B+

More historic than 70% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1803.
History grade

What drives Johnson’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Johnson is more historic than 70% of U.S. towns, #58 of 71 in Vermont. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Johnson’s overall grade.
Founding era1792, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194014.2% of homes (±6.3) · typical VT town 22.4% · U.S. 8.4%BNational Register6 listings, 17.4 per 10,000 residents · typical VT town 147 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 70%
NewerOlder
Vermont towns of 2,500+ (71)Ahead of 19%

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 Johnson’s 17.4 sits below most of its state (33% of Vermont towns have fewer) while its 6 listings outnumber those of 72% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to B+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.3 points). Two sources give 1792.

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 Johnson’s past

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

Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s Johnson, and 3 old place names are still on the map.Mapped building by building4 fire insurance maps, 1887 to 1909, drew every building in Johnson.Landmarks on the Register6 places on the National Register.Deep rootsEstablished in 1792: 234 years of Johnson.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Johnson’s post office has been open since 1803. Another post office, East Johnson, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Johnson
1803–today
East Johnson
1890–1902
18001910today
Hamlets and corners on the map
East JohnsonIthiel FallsWest Settlement
Gone or out of use
Lamoille County Grammar Schoolschool
8cemeteries and burying grounds inside Johnson
Balch - Town LineBidwell - French HillClark FamilyEvergreen LedgeLamoille ViewOld CatholicPlotWhitting Hill

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

Every building

Johnson, building by building, 1887–1909

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.

Johnson fire insurance map, 1887, sheet 11887Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

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

On the National Register

6 historic places in Johnson

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
6
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
6
each building in a district counts
first listed
1974
Waterman Covered Bridge
Waterman Covered Bridge, built 1868Scribner Covered BridgePower House Covered BridgeNye BlockJohnson Railroad DepotBridge 6
BuildingsStructures

Architectural styles listings

Queenpost truss3
Vernacular French Second Empire1
Stick1
Queen Anne1
Pratt through truss1
Waterman Covered BridgeQueenpost truss · Built 1868
Scribner Covered BridgeQueenpost truss
Power House Covered BridgeQueenpost truss
Nye BlockVernacular French Second Empire
Johnson Railroad DepotStick
Bridge 6Pratt through truss

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

The story so far

Johnson, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Johnson yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Johnson is a town in Lamoille County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,491 at the 2020 census. The town is home to Northern Vermont University-Johnson, a part the Vermont State Colleges system. The Vermont Studio Center is located in the village of Johnson. Since 1842, the town has been the home to Johnson Woolen Mills.

Johnson was established in 1792. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 3,446 in 2010, 3,491 in 2020.

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Johnson, 1792 to 1980

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1792
    FoundingJohnson is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1803Post officeThe Johnson post office opens
  5. 1836Born hereAmalia Post is born here
  6. 1846Born hereJulian Scott is born here
  7. 1854Born hereCharles H. Stearns is born here
  8. 1868BuiltWaterman Covered Bridge is built
  9. 1890Post officeThe East Johnson post office opens
  10. 20th century
  11. 1902Post officeThe East Johnson post office closes
  12. 1930On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  13. 1937In the archiveStore. Johnson, Vermont, by Arthur Rothstein, United States Office of War Information, Se…
  14. 1974In the archiveWatermanCoveredBridge
  15. 1980In the archiveJohnsonRRDepot
By decade

Johnson, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1930s to the 1980s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s7 items
Store. Johnson, Vermont, by Arthur Rothstein, United States Office of War Information, Sept. 1937, from the Library of …1937Store. Johnson, Vermont, by Arthur Rothstein, United …Store. Johnson, Vermont1937Store. Johnson, VermontFarmer's wife1937Farmer's wifeFarm family1937Farm familyUntitled photo, possibly related to: Farm family1937Untitled photo, possibly related to: Farm familyUntitled photo, possibly related to: Farm family1937Untitled photo, possibly related to: Farm familyUntitled photo, possibly related to: Farm family1937Untitled photo, possibly related to: Farm family
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
1970s–1980s3 items
WatermanCoveredBridge1974WatermanCoveredBridgeNyeBlock1976NyeBlockJohnsonRRDepot1980JohnsonRRDepot
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
Today1 recent
Johnson vt highlight2004Johnson vt highlight
On the map

Johnson on the map, 1930 to 1986

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

Johnson on the 1930 USGS mapJohnson on the 1943 USGS mapJohnson on the 1953 USGS mapJohnson on the 1986 USGS map1930Hyde Park 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 Johnson.

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.

Store. Johnson, Vermont, by Arthur Rothstein, United States Office of War Information, Sept. 1937, from the Library of …
Retake this viewStore. Johnson, Vermont, by Arthur Rothstein, United States Office of War Information, Sept. 1937, from the Library of …, 1937

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Johnson, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,500180018501900195020003,491

Grew from 93 people in 1790 to 3,491 in 2020, more than tenfold.

24 censuses, 1790–2020.

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

Famous people

5 famous people were born in Johnson

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

See all →
Julian ScottUnited States Army Medal of Honor recipient · b. 1846
Charles H. StearnsAmerican politician, Vermont · b. 1854
Amalia PostAmerican suffragist · b. 1836
D
Daniel NoyesAmerican politician
M
Matthew HillAmerican politician in Vermont
Help out

Finish Johnson’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.
Retake an old viewStore. Johnson, Vermont, by Arthur Roth…: 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.

Morristown4 historic placesACambridge7 historic placesAHyde Park2 historic placesB+EdenIts storyB−Waterville4 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Johnson’s history

What year was Johnson founded?

In 1792, according to Wikidata. Johnson’s post office opened in 1803, and the first U.S. census counted 93 people here in 1790.

How does Johnson rank for history?

Johnson is more historic than 70% of U.S. towns, #58 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 Johnson?

6 listings: 2 buildings and 4 structures.

How old are the homes in Johnson?

14% of Johnson’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.3 points), against a typical 22% for a Vermont town; the median home was built in 1980.

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 (5), the Library of Congress (6), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (6), 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.