History in Vermont

Discover 9 places to experience unusual history in Vermont.

Smugglers’ Notch

A mountain pass used by Prohibition-era bootleggers to facilitate traffic into and out of Canada from Vermont.

Burlington, Vermont

Stopping Stones Memorial

Inspired by the work of a German artist, these brass installations commemorate the lives of enslaved Vermonters.

Westminster, Vermont

Grave of William French

This man's death led (indirectly) to Vermont's independence in 1777.

Retreat Tower

Brattleboro, Vermont

Retreat Tower

Designed as a place for patients to take in the scenery, this tower has a dark history.

Joseph Smith Birthplace Memorial

Royalton, Vermont

Joseph Smith Birthplace Memorial

An obelisk marks the farmhouse where the founder of Mormonism was born.

Witch window in Craftsbury, Vermont.

Craftsbury, Vermont

Witch Windows

According to folklore, Vermont's slanted windows were installed to keep witches from flying into the house.

Brattleboro, Vermont

Estey Organ Museum

Play everything you see at a museum dedicated to a town's historic organ industry.

The Allen House is the larger of the two, built in 1867.

Fair Haven, Vermont

Vermont's Marble Mansions

Two distinctive homes on a New England village green look like a couple of frosted wedding cakes.

Sign at the entrance to Harvey's Lake.

Barnet, Vermont

Harvey's Lake: Home of Jacques Cousteau's First Dive

The place where the great marine explorer first learned to work underwater is not where you'd expect.

Are we missing something unusual in Vermont?