3 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 58 buildings between them. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1889 on, and the census since 1790.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1800. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Wilmington’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Wilmington is more historic than 92% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Wilmington’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 Wilmington’s 332 sits above most of its state (80% of Vermont towns have fewer) while its 58 historic buildings outnumber those of 86% 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 (±5.6 points). Two sources give 1751.
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 Wilmington’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The town was chartered in 1751 by Benning Wentworth, colonial governor of New Hampshire. It was named in honor of Spencer Compton, 1st Earl of Wilmington. Wilmington is the home of Haystack Mountain Ski Area, which operates as the private Hermitage Club.
Part of the village of Wilmington comprises the Wilmington Village Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Passages that mention Wilmington, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The history of the town of Marlborough, Windham County, Vermont1930Read the page →
Read the text
Writing from Wilmington, Oct. 20, 1863, Dr. Newton reviewed his life in Marlborough. “50 years ago today, I went to Marlboro’ as a candidate to preach the gospel, and for settlement. Then the snow was four inches deep and all looked dreary and sad.
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.
By decade
Wilmington, decade by decade
One decade in the archive so far: the 1890s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
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.
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.
1901Sheet 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.
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.
Retake this viewWilmington, Vt, 1891
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Wilmington’s page.
In 1751, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Wilmington’s post office opened in 1800, and the first U.S. census counted 645 people here in 1790.
How does Wilmington rank for history?
Wilmington is more historic than 92% of U.S. towns. 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 Wilmington?
Three places: the Wilmington Village Historic District (listed 1980), the Medburyville Bridge (1990) and the Crows Nest (1998).
How old are the homes in Wilmington?
14% of Wilmington’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.6 points), against a typical 22% for a Vermont town; the median home was built in 1975.
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), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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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