Vermont (VT).

• Region: New England
• Population: 647,064 (ranked 49th; 2022 estimate)
• Capital: Montpelier (pop. 8,023) (2022 estimate)
• Largest city: Burlington (pop. 44,595) (2022 estimate)
• Number of counties: 14
• State nickname: Green Mountain State
• State motto: Freedom and Unity; Stella quarta decima fulgeat (May the fourteenth star shine bright)
• State flag: Blue field with state coat of arms

Home of the most renowned ski resorts and maple syrup in the northeastern United States, Vermont became the fourteenth state to enter the Union on March 4, 1791. Located in the northwest corner of New England, Vermont is bordered by Quebec, New York, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts. Although it is the only state in the region without a seacoast, Lake Champlain lies on its western edge, and this freshwater coast provides residents with many of the recreational benefits enjoyed by other coastal communities. Vermont is known as much for its unique rural character as it is for its variety of small industries, including a popular winter recreation business. It is among the country's smallest states, and only Wyoming has a smaller resident population than Vermont.

State Name: Vermont's name is derived from the French phrase vert mont, meaning "green mountain." This, as well as the nickname "Green Mountain State," refers to the mountain range that divides central Vermont from north to south.

Capital: Between 1777 and 1805, several different towns served as the capital of Vermont. The current capital, Montpelier, was first settled in 1789 and became the state capital in 1805. Situated in the north-central part of the state, Montpelier is also the seat of Washington county, and holds the distinction of being the smallest state capital in the United States. In addition to being the hub of state government activity, the city is also an industrial center, and is home to a number of companies. The State House, constructed of granite and modeled on the architecture of ancient Greece, was built in 1859.

Flag: The Vermont state flag, which consists of a shield bearing the state coat of arms on a blue field, was adopted in 1923. The shield depicts a Vermont landscape, including mountains and pine trees, and several sheaves of wheat and a cow, symbolizing the state's agricultural activities. The state motto, "Freedom and Unity," is emblazoned below the landscape, and a buck's head on a blue and yellow scroll appears above the shield.

Official Symbols

• Flower: Red clover
• Bird: Hermit thrush
• Tree: Sugar maple
• Animal: Morgan horse
• Song: "These Green Mountains" by Diane Martin

State and National Historic Sites

• Bennington Battle Monument (Bennington)
• Chimney Point State Historic Site (Addison)
• Mount Independence State Historic Site (Orwell)
• President Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site (Plymouth Notch)
• President Chester A. Arthur State Historic Site (Fairfield)

State-Specific Holidays

• Town Meeting Day, first Tuesday in March
• Bennington Battle Day, August 16
• Indigenous Peoples' Day, second Monday in October

DEMOGRAPHICS

• Population: 647,064 (ranked 49th; 2022 estimate)
• Population density: 69.8/sq mi (2020 estimate)
• Urban population: 35.1% (2020 estimate)
• Rural population: 64.9% (2020 estimate)
• Population under 18: 17.7% (2022 estimate)
• Population over 65: 21.6% (2022 estimate)
• White alone: 93.8% (2022 estimate)
• Black or African American alone: 1.5% (2022 estimate)
• Hispanic or Latino: 2.3% (2022 estimate)
• American Indian and Alaska Native alone: 0.4% (2022 estimate)
• Asian alone: 2.1% (2022 estimate)
• Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone: 0.0% (2022 estimate)
• Two or More Races: 2.1% (2022 estimate)
• Per capita income: $37,903 (ranked 17th; 2021 estimate)
• Unemployment: 2.6% (2022 estimate)

American Indians: Historically, Vermont has been home to the Abenaki tribe of the Algonquian nation. Before Europeans settled the area, there were approximately ten thousand Abenakis, Mohicans, and Penacooks in Vermont. During the sixteenth century, the Algonquians were ousted from the land by the Iroquois, who in turn were removed from Vermont by the French the following century.

ENVIRONMENT AND GEOGRAPHY

• Total area: 9,616 sq mi (ranked 45th)
• Land area: 9,217 sq mi (95.8% of total area)
• Water area: 400 sq mi (4.2% of total area)
• National parks: 2
• Highest point: Mount Mansfield (4,393 feet)
• Lowest point: Lake Champlain (95 feet)
• Highest temperature: 107° F (Vernon, July 7, 1912)
• Lowest temperature: –50° F (Bloomfield, December 30, 1933)

Topography: While 74 percent of Vermont is forested, the state can be divided into six distinctly different regions, allowing for the variety of scenery and natural beauty for which the state is known. The state's mountains, valleys, and other geologic features are the result of shifting glaciers during the Ice Age. Today, the most significant natural influences on agricultural and transportation in Vermont are the Hudson River and the Lake Champlain Valley on its western edge, and the Connecticut River Valley, an extension of the Western New England Upland (also called the Vermont Piedmont), on its eastern border. Most of the state's best farmland is found in the Champlain Valley.

The Green Mountains, including the state's highest peak (Mount Mansfield), dominate the central portion of Vermont. This region is also the focal point of the state's tourist industry. The granite mountains of the Northeast Highlands cover the northeastern part of Vermont, and the Taconic Mountain region, with its many scenic lakes and streams, covers the southwestern corner of the state. The Vermont Valley runs north to south between the Green Mountains and the Taconic Mountains in the southern part of the state.

Major Lakes

• Lake Champlain
• Lake Memphremagog
• Lake Bomoseen
• Sterling Pond

Major Rivers

• Batten Kill River
• Connecticut River
• Lamoille River
• Missisquoi River
• Otter Creek
• White River
• Winooski River

State and National Parks: In addition to its winter recreation areas, Vermont boasts many state forests and state parks. Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historic Park, in Woodstock, was the state's first national park, and the first National Park Service site dedicated to the idea of conservation. In addition to the historic mansion located on the property, the park features hiking trails and is adjacent to the Billings Farm and Museum. The Green Mountain National Forest, located in south central Vermont, was established in 1911, and features a wide variety of recreational resources spread out over more 400,000 acres. Popular state parks include Bomoseen State Park (West Castleton), Camel's Hump State Park (Huntington Center), and Groton State Park, located between St. Johnsbury and Montpelier.

Natural Resources: Vermont's chief natural resources are its abundant forests, fertile soil, and large mineral deposits. The Green Mountain region contains most of the state's granite and marble deposits, which are for the most part quarried rather than mined. The processing of granite and marble into economically viable products is an important industry in Vermont. Smaller deposits of other minerals, such as slate, talc, copper and silver, are found in the Taconic Mountains and the Vermont Valley. Asbestos was discovered in the northern Green Mountains region in 1899 and quarried throughout much of the twentieth century, with the state becoming one of the leading sources of asbestos. However, widespread concern over the mineral's adverse effects on human health decreased demand, and the asbestos industry in Vermont ended in the 1990s, though the quarry site remains. The state's most fertile farmland is found near the river valleys.

Plants and Animals: The forests that cover 74 percent of Vermont are populated chiefly with hardwood trees such as birch, beech, and maple, and softwoods such as cedar, hemlock, spruce, and pine, which tend to grow at higher elevations.

Over 2,800 different species of plants thrive throughout Vermont. Of them, the majority are flowering plants; the most common include violets, buttercups, daisies, lilacs, pussy willows, goldenrods, and anemones. A variety of grasses and other brush grow in the state's forests, and several types of ferns may be found in mountain regions.

Traditionally, pioneers settling in Vermont hunted deer and bear in order to survive. Today, the white-tailed deer is the state's most popular and numerous game animal. Other fur-bearing animals, commonly found in forested areas, include foxes, moose, beavers, bobcats, and smaller animals such as squirrels, raccoons, rabbits, porcupines, and skunks. Cougars and wolves were once plentiful but are rarely seen in Vermont today.

Vermont's lakes are populated with trout, salmon, bass, smelt, and pickerel, and are popular for fishing year-round.

Climate: Although Vermont is located in a temperate zone, the state still experiences rather extreme temperature changes from season to season. Likewise, temperatures may vary drastically among different mountain and valley regions throughout the state, with the growing season lasting significantly longer in the valleys than in other areas. The summers are generally short and relatively cool. Winter, on the other hand, is typically long and cold.

Average annual precipitation totals vary in low-lying parts of the state and in the mountainous regions. The mountains also receive the heaviest average snowfall, a valuable commodity to the state's skiing and winter sports industry. Blizzards and ice storms are common. The remnants of tropical storms like Hurricane Irene sometimes bring heavy rains, causing floods. Because of climate change, Vermont is getting rainier overall. In July 2023, much of the state experienced catastrophic flooding as a result of prolonged heavy rainfall over a two-day period.

EDUCATION AND CULTURE

Major Colleges and Universities

• Bennington College (Bennington)
• Castleton University (Castleton)
• Champlain College (Burlington)
• Goddard College (Plainfield)
• Middlebury College (Middlebury)
• Northern Vermont University (Johnson, Lyndonville)
• Norwich University (Northfield)
• St. Michael's College (Colchester)
• University of Vermont (Burlington)
• Vermont Law School (South Royalton)

Major Museums

• Bennington Museum (Bennington)
• Billings Farm and Museum (Woodstock)
• Black River Academy Museum (Ludlow)
• Fairbanks Museum and Planetarium (St. Johnsbury)
• Lake Champlain Maritime Museum (Vergennes)
• American Museum of Fly Fishing (Manchester)
• Robert Hull Fleming Museum, University of Vermont (Burlington)
• Shelburne Museum (Shelburne)
• Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History (Middlebury)
• Vermont History Museum (Montpelier)

Major Libraries

• Howe Library, University of Vermont (Burlington)
• Edward Clark Crossett Library, Bennington College (Bennington)
• Leahy Library, Vermont History Center (Barre)
• Jeremiah Durick Library, St. Michael's College (Colchester)
• Vermont State Library (Montpelier)

Media

There are a small number of television stations in Vermont, as well as several licensed radio stations. The state's first radio station, WYSB, began broadcasting out of Rutland in 1930, and WCAX-TV, the first television station, opened in 1954. Most of the state's major media outlets are based in Burlington.

The state's first newspaper, the Vermont Gazette, began publication in 1780 in Westminster. By the early twenty-first century, a number of papers were published in Vermont, including the Burlington Free Press and the Rutland Herald, the state's two largest daily newspapers. The quarterly magazine Vermont Life was one of several periodicals also published in the state until 2018.

ECONOMY AND INFRASTUCTURE

• Gross domestic product (in millions $USD): 40,617.1 (ranked 50th; 2022 estimate)
• GDP percent change: 2.8%

Major Industries: Despite Vermont's image as a rural state with an agricultural economy, the majority of its workers are employed in the service and manufacturing industries. In 2022, Vermont's largest industry was finance, insurance, real estate, rental, and leasing.

Manufacturing is another important sector of Vermont's economy. Valuable products manufactured in the state include computers, electronic components, machinery, food products, and chemicals. Despite a round of layoffs during the early 2000s, the state's largest single private employer for many years was IBM, which had a major facility in Essex Junction until it sold the plant to the company GlobalFoundries in 2014. Smaller specialty manufacturers also operate throughout the state, and produce such diverse items as canoes and teddy bears. In addition to these products, Vermont also produces more maple syrup than any other state and has its own standards system for distinguishing different grades of the syrup. The sap of the maple tree is also used to make maple sugar, maple cream, maple taffy, and maple sugar cakes, and is found in other products, such as barbecue sauce. The processing of these and other food products, especially dairy, is an important aspect of Vermont's economy.

Tourism: Along with the various service industries, tourism is one of the two largest sources of income for Vermont. The state is a popular destination among tourists year-round, and offers a wide variety of seasonal activities and attractions. In the spring, visitors flock to the state to sample the new crop of maple syrup. During the summer months, the relatively cool weather draws hikers, campers, and other outdoor enthusiasts to resort areas in the Green Mountains. Autumn brings tourists to the region to view the vibrant, changing colors of the foliage. Since the 1940s, Vermont has been one of the most popular winter destinations in the United States, thanks to its numerous mountains, prodigious snowfall, and abundance of ski resorts. Most of Vermont's resorts are located in the Green Mountains. Major ski resorts include Killington, Stowe, Smuggler's Notch, Sugarbush, and Okemo. Other notable tourist attractions in Vermont include the more than one hundred covered bridges, more than any other US state, found on country roads throughout the region. Also, Vermont hosts the internationally acclaimed Marlboro Music Festival each July and August.

Energy Production: Because of Vermont's lack of fossil fuel resources, electric power is a valuable commodity. For years the majority of the state’s power was produced by hydroelectric stations in Canada and the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant, located in Vernon, Vermont. The state lost 55 percent of its generating capacity when Vermont Yankee was closed in late 2014. The state emphasized the development of renewable energy source and became an early leader in biomass electricity production. By 2021, nearly 100 percent of its electricity came from renewable sources, including domestic hydroelectric power, biomass, solar power, and wind power—more than any other state in the country. Vermont relies on energy imported from Canada and other states for most of its power needs.

Agriculture: Since the late nineteenth century, Vermont has been noted for its agriculture-based economy. The state's reputation as a premier producer of dairy products has remained largely intact. One of Vermont's most important farm products is milk, and dairy farming accounts for a significant portion of agricultural income. Many neighboring states use milk from Vermont farms, which also produce a distinctive variety of cheddar cheese. The dairy industry is so prominent in Vermont that the state is home to nearly half as many cows as people. The Holstein dairy cow, with its familiar black-and-white markings, is ubiquitous throughout Vermont farming country, and is the state's unofficial mascot. Much of the fertile farmland in Vermont's valleys is devoted to growing feed for this most important component of dairy production.

Grains, corn, fruit and vegetables, nuts, and decorative plants are also grown. Other types of farming practiced in Vermont include apple growing, sheep raising, and beef and poultry production. In addition, there are a number of horse farms in the state. The Morgan horse, a breed unique to Vermont, has been raised in the state since the early nineteenth century.

Airports: There are several major public airports in Vermont. Burlington International Airport and Rutland-Southern Vermont Regional Airport in Clarendon are the only airports in the state that offer regularly scheduled commercial flights, with connections to locations including New York, Albany, Boston, Hartford, and several Canadian cities.

Seaports: Vermont's only water port is on Lake Champlain in Burlington. It was one of the most important ports in the United States during the nineteenth century, when it was a shipping hub for the lumber industry. As deforestation and the proliferation of railroads took hold, however, the port's importance declined, and Burlington became the rail center of Vermont. The port offers ferry service between Burlington and Port Kent, New York.

GOVERNMENT

• Governor: Phil Scott (Republican)
• Present constitution date: July 9, 1793
• Electoral votes: 3
• Number of counties: 14
• Violent crime rate: 173.4 (per 100,000 residents) (2020 estimate)
• Death penalty: No (abolished in 1964)

Constitution: The present Vermont constitution was adopted in 1793. A previous 1777 version was one of the most liberal state constitutions of its time, in that it forbade slavery and afforded all men the right to vote, regardless of religion, race, or land ownership. Amendments are proposed every four years by a two-thirds vote in the state Senate, and then must be approved by a majority of the state representatives. An amendment cannot become law without the approval of a majority of the state's voters.

Branches of Government

Executive: Vermont's governor is elected to a two-year term, with no limit on the number of terms they may serve. Other executive officers elected by popular vote include the lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, auditor, and treasurer, all of whom serve two-year terms.

Legislative: Vermont's bicameral legislature is also known as the General Assembly, and consisted solely of the House of Representatives until 1836, when the Senate was created. There are 30 state senators and 150 representatives, all of whom are elected to two-year terms. Before a 1965 reapportionment, however, Vermont had one of the largest state houses in the country, with 246 representatives. Both houses of the legislature meet every other year, and the governor has the power to call special sessions as needed. In addition, each town in Vermont holds a town meeting on the first Tuesday of every March, officially known as Town Meeting Day. These meetings allow all of the state's citizens to debate smaller local issues as well as elect local officials.

Judicial: The Supreme Court is Vermont's highest court, and consists of a chief justice and four associate justices, all of whom are elected by the legislature to six-year terms. The state's Superior Court judges are also elected by the legislature, and the governor appoints judges to the District Court, with the approval of the legislature.

HISTORY

8500 BCE Shifting glaciers begin forming the body of water known today as Lake Champlain.

1500–1600 The Algonquian peoples living in what is now western Vermont are driven from present-day New York by the Iroquois, who use the land as a hunting ground.

1609 Explorer Samuel de Champlain claims the Vermont region for his native France, after visiting the lake that now bears his name.

1666 French settlers build a fort dedicated to Saint Anne on Lake Champlain's Isle La Motte.

1690 British captain Jacobus de Warm establishes a fort at Chimney Point after leading his troops from Albany, New York, to what is now Middlebury.

1724 Fort Dummer, Vermont's first permanent European settlement, is established in present-day Brattleboro.

1754–63 The Lake Champlain region is a major battleground during the French and Indian War, during which England wrests control of Vermont from France.

1764 King George III grants New York jurisdiction over Vermont, invalidating all land grants issued previously by Benning Wentworth, royal governor of New Hampshire.

1770Ethan Allen forms a military group, known as the Green Mountain Boys, in response to efforts to evict those Vermont landholders without land grants issued by New York; Allen and his followers forcibly remove New York settlers and conduct raids on eastern New York.

1775 In an important Revolutionary War victory for the Americans, the Green Mountain Boys capture Fort Ticonderoga, near Lake Champlain, from the British.

1777 Vermont declares itself an independent republic and its constitution, the first to include an article forbidding involuntary slavery, is signed on July 2.

1785 Construction is completed on the first bridge to span the Connecticut River, at Bellows Falls.

1791 Vermont is admitted to the Union as the fourteenth state on March 4; The University of Vermont is chartered the same year.

1805 Montpelier is established as the permanent capital of Vermont.

1814 During the War of 1812, a small fleet commanded by Thomas MacDonough defeats British forces in a naval battle on Lake Champlain; US forces win decisive control over the lake in the Battle of Plattsburgh the same year.

1823 The Concord Academy is founded by Reverend Samuel Read Hall for the express purpose of training teachers; the Champlain Canal creates an important new trade route between Vermont and New York.

1831 Anti-Masonic sentiment in Vermont reaches a fever pitch with the election of Anti-Masonic Party member William Palmer as governor.

1837 The first practical electric motor is developed in Brandon by blacksmith Thomas Davenport.

1848 Vermont's first railroad begins operation in the central part of the state, running from White River Junction to Bethel.

1850 The federal Fugitive Slave Act, intended to protect the investment of slave owners and to return formerly enslaved people who had escaped, is nullified by the Vermont legislature.

1861-65 During the Civil War, approximately thirty-four thousand Vermonters serve in the Union army; in October 1864, Confederate soldiers disguised as civilians rob several banks in the town of St. Albans, making off with more than $200,000.

1881 Fairfield native Chester A. Arthur becomes the twenty-first president of the United States.

1898 During the Spanish-American War, Vermont natives Admiral George Dewey and Admiral Charles Clark lead US forces to a number of naval victories.

1911 Vermont establishes a "publicity bureau" to attract tourists, the first state to do so.

1923 Plymouth native Calvin Coolidge becomes the thirtieth president of the United States.

1927 In Vermont's worst flood to date, waters from the Winooski and Connecticut Rivers flood several towns, killing sixty people and causing millions of dollars in damage.

1933 In the midst of the Great Depression, approximately half a million Vermonters find themselves unemployed.

1936 On Town Meeting Day, Vermont citizens reject the proposed Green Mountain Parkway, a 250-mile highway that would run the length of the state.

1941 On September 11, the Vermont legislature declares war on Germany three months before the official United States declaration. More than fifty thousand Vermont men and women served in the armed forces during World War II.

1954 Vermonters elect the country's first female lieutenant governor, Consuelo N. Bailey.

1957 IBM opens a semiconductor manufacturing plant in Essex Junction. Eventually, the company becomes the state's largest private employer, and the town's population doubles.

1962 For the first time since 1853, a Democrat, Philip H. Hoff, is elected governor of traditionally Republican Vermont.

1964 Democratic presidential candidate Lyndon B. Johnson wins Vermont's electoral votes. It is the first time a Democrat carries the state since 1856.

1970 The Environment Control Law, which allows the state to protect its resources by limiting environmentally harmful development, is passed by the Vermont legislature.

1973 Heavy rains cause the state's worst flood since 1927, in which three people are killed and damage is estimated at $65 million.

1974 The Vermont French Cultural Commission receives funding for its efforts to promote French culture and language, such as dual-language street signs, throughout the state.

1984 Vermont elects its first female governor, Madeleine M. Kunin.

1992 The Vermont Supreme Court rejects the claims of a group of Abenakis to 150 acres of land in the northwestern corner of the state.

1998 The Vermont congressional delegation covertly inserts language designating Lake Champlain as the "Sixth Great Lake" into a bill passed by both houses of the US Congress. The designation is revoked soon afterward.

1999 A landmark Vermont Supreme Court decision requires the state to offer equal rights and benefits to same-sex as opposite-sex couples.

2000 Vermont becomes the first state in the nation to recognize civil unions, similar to marriage, between people of the same sex.

2002 State officials attempt to block renewed attempts by Vermont's Abenaki population to gain tribal status and state and federal recognition.

2006 Former Vermont Governor and Democratic Party Presidential candidate Howard Dean is named Chairman of the Democratic National Committee. Dean announces his plan to reform the party from the ground up, focusing on all fifty states as opposed to “swing states” only.

2009 Vermont enacts a statute to allow same-sex marriage.

2011Hurricane Irene causes widespread flooding and damage to the state.

2014 The Vermont Yankee Nuclear Plant in Vernon, Vermont, is closed.

2016Bernie Sanders, a US senator from Vermont, runs unsuccessfully for the Democratic presidential nomination.

2018 Vermont enacts statutes to legalize marijuana possession for adults aged twenty-one and older and to allow prescription medications from Canada.

Vermont becomes the first state to nominate a transgender person, Christine Hallquist, in a race for governor.

2019 Sanders once again enters the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, ahead of the 2020 election, but loses to eventual president Joe Biden.

2023 Catastrophic flooding caused by a two-day rain event causes extensive damage to the state.

FAMOUS PEOPLE

James Rowland Angell, 1869–1949 (Burlington) , Psychologist, educator.

Chester A. Arthur, 1830–86 (Fairfield) , Twenty-first president of the United States.

Orson Bean, 1928–2020 (Burlington) , Actor.

Myra Colby Bradwell, 1831–94 (Manchester) , First US woman to become an attorney.

Jeanne Brink, 1944– (Montpelier) , Abenaki artisan, curator, education consultant.

Calvin Coolidge, 1872–1933 (Plymouth) , Thirtieth president of the United States.

Thomas Davenport, 1802–1851 (Williamstown) , Inventor of the first battery-electric motor.

John Deere, 1804–86 (Rutland) , Inventor, agricultural machinery manufacturer.

John Dewey, 1859–1952 (Burlington) , Philosopher, educator.

Stephen A. Douglas, 1813–61 (Brandon) , US congressman, debate opponent of Abraham Lincoln.

James Fisk, 1834–72 (Bennington) , Capitalist, corrupt financier.

Richard Morris Hunt, 1827–95 (Brattleboro) , Architect.

George Perkins Marsh, 1801–82 (Woodstock) , Linguist, conservationist, author of "The Earth as Modified by Human Action" (1874).

Levi Morton, 1824–1920 (Shoreham) , Twenty-second vice president of the United States.

Elisha Otis, 1811–61 (Halifax) , Inventor of the modern elevator.

Morgan Wolf Page, 1981– (Burlington) , Deejay.

Joseph Smith, 1805–44 (Sharon) , Founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (the Mormons).

Thaddeus Stevens, 1792–1868 (Danville) , Abolitionist, US congressman.

Daisy Turner, 1883–1988 (Grafton) , Subject of an important oral history project.

Rudy Vallee, 1901–86 (Island Pond) , Singer, bandleader.

Damon Wayans Jr., 1982– (Huntington) , Actor.

Henry Wells, 1805–78 (Thetford) , Co-founder of Wells, Fargo and Co. express shipping business.

William Griffith Wilson, 1895–1971 (East Dorset) , Founder of Alcoholics Anonymous.

Brigham Young, 1801–77 (Whitingham) , Mormon leader.

TRIVIA

• The first United States patent, signed on July 31, 1790, by Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, was issued to Vermont native Samuel Hopkins, who developed a method for making potash and pearl ash out of wood ash.
• Montpelier is the only state capital in the United States without a McDonald's restaurant location.
• In 1810, Bradford native James Wilson constructed the first globe made in the United States.
• Vermont is one of the few US states, along with Maine, Hawaii, and Alaska, that prohibit billboard advertising.
• The South Burlington–based Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream company donates its ice cream waste and by-products to farms that convert it into energy.
• Vermont routinely ranks as one of the safest states in the country.

Bibliography

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Banacos, Peter. "The Great Vermont Flood of 10-11 July 2023: Preliminary Meteorological Summary." National Weather Service, 5 Aug. 2023, www.weather.gov/btv/The-Great-Vermont-Flood-of-10-11-July-2023-Preliminary-Meteorological-Summary. Accessed 7 Sept. 2023.

"Economic Profile for Vermont." Bureau of Economic Analysis, US Dept. of Commerce, 31 Mar. 2023, apps.bea.gov/regional/bearfacts/. Accessed 8 Sept. 2023.

Klyza, Christopher, and Stephen C. Trombulak. The Story of Vermont: A Natural and Cultural History. Middlebury College P, 1999.

"The Mineral Industry of Vermont." National Minerals Information Center, USGS, US Dept. of the Interior, www.usgs.gov/centers/nmic/mineral-industry-vermont. Accessed 30 Aug. 2019.

Sherman, Joe. Fast Lane on a Dirt Road: Contemporary History of Vermont. Chelsea Green, 2000.

“Vermont.” Office of the United States Trade Representative, Executive Office of the President, 2018, ustr.gov/map/state-benefits/vt. Accessed 28 July 2020. ‌

"Vermont." Quick Facts, US Census Bureau, 1 July 2022, www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/VT,US/PST045222. Accessed 8 Sept. 2023.

"Vermont: 2020 Census." US Census Bureau, 25 Aug. 2021, www.census.gov/library/stories/state-by-state/vermont-population-change-between-census-decade.html. Accessed 7 Oct. 2021.

"Vermont State Profile and Energy Estimates: Profile Overview." US Energy Information Administration, 20 Oct. 2022, www.eia.gov/state/?sid=VT. Accessed 8 Sept. 2023.

James Ryan