Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 1,092, settled in 1809.
The best of Shrewsbury’s subject grades are an A for health and the outdoors and an A− for history; the weakest is a C− for cost of living. No town among the 72 in Vermont we compare has a lower share of working residents who work in town than Shrewsbury. 38% of the land in Shrewsbury is conserved, where Vermont’s towns sit at 14% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. The biggest place to walk is Coolidge State Forest, 4,166 acres with 13.5 miles of trail. Shrewsbury has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Shrewsbury beats most towns.
Census counts: 383 in 1790, a low of 383 in 1790, 1,096 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1880 and 3 maps from 1891 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Vermont), ordered by how far Shrewsbury is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Shrewsbury, 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 Shrewsbury.
49 miles of trail in 7 parks and preserves. Shrewsbury’s trail density is 1.0 miles per square mile, against 0.6 in Vermont’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Coolidge State Forest | 13.5 mi | 4,166 |
| 2. Green Mountain National Forest | 12.7 mi | 2,118 |
| 3. Plymsbury Wildlife Management Area | 6.2 mi | 1,632 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Mill River Unified Union School District #52. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shrewsbury Mountain SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 72 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within VT on state tests and graduation
Shrewsbury beats the Vermont average on 10 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 4. 28% of Shrewsbury adults sleep under 7 hours. No town among the 72 in Vermont we compare has a lower share of adults who have been diagnosed with depression than Shrewsbury.
| Shrewsbury | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 30% | 36% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 6.2% | 9.5% | 14% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 80% | 76% | 79% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 12% | 14% |
| What stands out | Shrewsbury | VT |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.2% | 9.2% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.1% | 10.1% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.9% | 9.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 83% of U.S. communities. Since 2011, 21 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Shrewsbury.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Most working residents leave Shrewsbury for work: only 2% work in town. Since 2013, Shrewsbury has lost 32 jobs, to 146 in 2023. Shrewsbury’s average trip to work is 26 minutes.
| Shrewsbury | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 7% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $91,000 | $80,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 16% | 15% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The July high in Shrewsbury is 77°F. Shrewsbury has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Children under 18 are 25% of residents (18% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 15% of residents (22% statewide). 41% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Shrewsbury.
| Shrewsbury | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 25% | 19% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 41% | 40% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 22% | 22% | 18% |
| Median age | 42.3 years | 43.7 years | 40.5 years |
50% women, 50% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±6.6 points. Across Vermont, 50.4% of residents are women.
| Shrewsbury | VT | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 15.7% | 9.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.4% | 8.8% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 4.9% | 10% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 9.9% | 11.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.6% | 12.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 10.6% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13% | 14.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.3% | 13% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 9.6% | 8.5% | 7% |
| No diploma | 6.4% | 5.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 29.7% | 26.8% | 26% |
| Some college | 13.2% | 15.8% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 9.8% | 8.6% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 23% | 25.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 18% | 18.6% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,100, single groups can be off by several points
Among 72 Vermont towns, just 2 have a higher share of households owning their home than Shrewsbury. Typical home values rose 4.8% in the year to September 2026.
| Shrewsbury | Vermont towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 95% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,438 a month | $1,135 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Shrewsbury. Close and well known come first.
Big draw34 mi LandmarkFort Ticonderoga
7 mi Ski areaKillington Resort184 runs · 3,031 ft vertical
35 mi LakeLake George
10 mi Ski areaOkemo Mountain119 runs · 2,165 ft vertical
29 mi Ski areaStratton Mountain Resort106 runs · 1,899 ft vertical
9 mi Ski areaPico Mountain Resort68 runs · 1,947 ft verticalFort Ticonderoga: Mwanner, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Killington Resort: NHRHS2010, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lake George: Sixlocal, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Okemo Mountain: Jrclark (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Stratton Mountain Resort: Rudi Riet from Washington, DC, United States, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Pico Mountain Resort: petersent, Public domain
None within 15 miles of Shrewsbury; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Shrewsbury residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Vermont.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Town in Vermont, United States
Shrewsbury is a town in Rutland County, Vermont, United States. The town was named for the Earl of Shrewsbury. The population was 1,096 at the 2020 census. Shrewsbury was the home of the late U.S. Senator Jim Jeffords. In 1986/87, the town received worldwide attention from the media, when a moose spent 76 days unsuccessfully courting a local farmer's cow. A book, A Moose for Jessica was written about the story.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
2 notable people were born here, including Darwin Abel Finney and Ephraim Knight.
.jpg){kind=link}
