Springfield dates to 1761, and 30% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 96% of U.S. towns · #22 of 71 in Vermont. What drives it
10 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Stellafane Observatory, a National Historic Landmark, and three historic districts with 77 buildings between them. Below: 19 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1790.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1817.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Springfield’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Springfield is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #22 of 71 in Vermont. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Springfield’s overall grade.
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 Springfield’s 92.5 sits near the middle of its state (56% of Vermont towns have fewer) while its 84 historic buildings outnumber those of 88% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1761.
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 (±6.0 points).
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 Springfield’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.
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.
One of the New Hampshire grants, the township was chartered on August 20, 1761, by Governor Benning Wentworth and awarded to Gideon Lyman and 61 others. Although Springfield's alluvial flats made it among the best agricultural towns in the state, the Black River falls, which drop 110 feet (34 m) in 1⁄8 of a mile (200 m), helped it develop into a mill town. Springfield was located in the center of the Precision Valley region, home of the Vermont machine tool industry.
Passages that mention Springfield, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of the town of Springfield, Vermont1895 · page 698Read the page →
Read the text
Springfield, April 28, 1784. By application made by a number of the freemen of the town of Springfield for a town meeting, these are therefore to require all the freemen and other inhabitants of the town of Springfield, to meet at the house of Lieut. Roger Bates, on Thursday the 13th day of May, by 2 o'clock p. m., to act as follows when met: 1. To choose a moderator to govern sd meeting.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of the town of Springfield, Vermont1895 · page 515Read the page →
Read the text
said township of Springfield wliich tlie said proprietors have recovered .judgment for, and title and possession of; and also to receive the possession of any lauds in said Springfield, which the said proprietors shall recover judgment for, and title and possession of hereafter." By this we understand that these three men were to have the care and manag'eraent of all the lands owned by the proprietors in the town. At a meeting of the proprietors, held in Springfield, at the block-house, Aug. 27, 1771, Simon Stevens was moderator, and John Barrett clerk. At that meeting Simon Stevens, Abner Bisbee, and
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Springfield, 1761 to 1935
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Springfield. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1926Claremont 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 Springfield.
Every building
Springfield, building by building, 1885–1921
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.
In 1761, according to Wikidata. Springfield’s post office opened in 1817, and the first U.S. census counted 1,097 people here in 1790.
How does Springfield rank for history?
Springfield is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #22 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 Springfield?
10 listings: 6 buildings, among them the Stellafane Observatory (a National Historic Landmark since 1989) and the Eureka Schoolhouse (listed 1971, the first), 3 historic districts, the Springfield Downtown Historic District, the Gen. Lewis R. Morris House and the Southview Housing Historic District, with 77 contributing buildings, and 1 structure. 84 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Springfield?
30% of Springfield’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.0 points), against a typical 22% for a Vermont town; the median home was built in 1958.
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 (14), Wikidata (4), the National Register of Historic Places (10), 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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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