Bradford, Vermont Explained

Official Name:Bradford, Vermont
Settlement Type:Town
Pushpin Map:United States
Mapsize:200px
Parts Type:Communities
Parts:Bradford
Bradford Center
Established Title:Chartered
Established Date:1770
Unit Pref:Imperial
Area Total Km2:77.4
Area Land Km2:77.2
Area Water Km2:0.2
Area Total Sq Mi:29.9
Area Land Sq Mi:29.8
Area Water Sq Mi:0.1
Population As Of:2020
Population Total:2790
Population Density Km2:36.1
Population Blank1 Title:Households
Population Blank1:1028
Population Blank2 Title:Families
Population Blank2:692
Utc Offset:-5
Utc Offset Dst:-4
Elevation M:263
Elevation Ft:425
Postal Code:05033
Blank Info:50-07375[1]
Blank1 Name:GNIS feature ID
Blank1 Info:1462046[2]
Website:bradford-vt.us

Bradford is a town in Orange County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,790 at the 2020 census.[3] Bradford is located on the county's eastern border, bordering both the Connecticut River and New Hampshire, and is a commercial center for some of its surrounding towns.

History

The earliest name of the settlement was Wait's River Town or Waitstown,[4] in honor of Joseph Wait, a member of Rogers' Rangers.[5] The town was originally part of Gloucester County in the Province of New York before becoming part of Vermont.[4] In 1770, the town was established by New York patent: 3000acres were granted on May 3, 1770, and the town was named Mooretown after Sir Henry Moore, 1st Baronet, then the royal governor of New York.[4] [5] On October 23, 1788, at the request of town's residents, the town was renamed Bradford by the Vermont General Assembly,[4] likely after Bradford, Massachusetts.[5] According to the Vermont Encyclopedia, Bradford "has always been an industrial and commercial center for the surrounding rural towns and villages."[5]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 29.9mi2, of which 29.8mi2 is land and 0.1mi2 (0.20%) is water. The Waits River flows through Bradford in a southeasterly direction to its confluence with the Connecticut River, which forms the eastern boundary of the town.[4] [6] The town rises from the river's meadows through low hills and river valleys and finally Wright's Mountain (at an elevation of 1,822 feet) close to the border with Newbury to the north.[4]

Bradford is bordered by the towns of Newbury to the north, West Fairlee and Fairlee to the south, and Corinth to the west.[7]

Piermont, New Hampshire lies across the Connecticut River to the east. The Piermont Bridge, a Pennsylvania truss bridge erected in 1928, connects Bradford and Piermont.[8]

Bradford is part of the Upper Valley micropolitan region of east-central Vermont and west-central New Hampshire surrounding the Connecticut River.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010,[9] there were 2,797 people, 1,281 households, and 692 families residing in the town. The population density was 87.8/mi2. There were 1,217 housing units at an average density of 40.8/mi2. The racial makeup of the town was 97.71% White, 0.46% Black or African American, 0.46% Native American, 0.23% Asian, 0.15% Pacific Islander, and 0.99% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.61% of the population.

There were 1,028 households, out of which 33.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them. 51.8% were married couples living together, 12.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.6% were non-families. 25.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 2.98.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.2% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 25.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.3 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $37,270, and the median income for a family was $42,128. Males had a median income of $30,865 versus $28,857 for females. The per capita income for the town was $18,452. About 7.9% of families and 11.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.5% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Bradford has two public schools: Bradford Elementary School for kindergarten through grade 6 and Oxbow High School for grades 7–12. Attached to Oxbow High School is the Riverbend Career and Technical Center for adults, a vocational center. Total school enrollment for fiscal year 2017–2018 was 242 at Bradford Elementary[10] and approximately 373 at Oxbow/Riverbend.[11] While Bradford Elementary serves only the Town of Bradford, Oxbow/Riverbend is part of a supervisory union, and so has students from the surrounding area as well.[12] The central office for the Orange East Supervisory Union is located in Bradford.

A branch of Central Vermont Basic Education, which provides curricula for learning basic skills (reading, writing, math and computer literacy), English language that prepares the student for U.S. citizenship, credential programs for high school diplomas and GED, and college and career readiness, is also located in Bradford.

Transportation

The town is crossed by Interstate 91 (6.42miles in the town), U.S. Route 5 (5.85miles) and Vermont Routes 25 and 25B (8.01miles).[13]

Stagecoach Transportation bus service also serves Bradford, with commuter service to points south including Hanover, N.H., Lebanon, N.H., and White River Junction, Vt., along its River Route. Stagecoach also provides a "Circulator Route" to shopping and service destinations in the Lower Cohase Region, and provides individual rides to health care and other approved appointments.

Sites of interest

The town has a number of scenic views, including of the Connecticut River Valley, Waits River Valley, and White Mountains. Also of note is the view from Wright's Mountain.[14]

Notable people

Works cited

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: U.S. Census website . . January 31, 2008 .
  2. Web site: US Board on Geographic Names. January 31, 2008. United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007.
  3. Web site: Census - Geography Profile: Bradford town, Orange County, Vermont . December 28, 2021.
  4. Silas McKeen, A History of Bradford, Vermont (J.D. Clark & Son: Montpelier, Vermont: 1875), pp. 29-30.
  5. "Bradford" in The Vermont Encyclopedia (eds. John J. Duffy, Samuel B. Hand & Ralph H. Orth: University of Vermont Press, 2003), p. 61.
  6. [DeLorme]
  7. http://vcgi.vermont.gov/sites/vcgi/files/static_maps/town_county_11_17.pdf Vermont Town and County Boundaries
  8. Tim Camerato, Repairs to Piermont-Bradford Bridge Raise Concerns, Valley News (November 14, 2016).
  9. https://www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/cph-2-47.pdf
  10. 2016-2017 BAGSD Annual Report
  11. Oxbow High School Profile 2015–2016 CEEB 460045
  12. Bradford Town Plan, pp. 19-21.
  13. Bradford Town Plan, p. 73.
  14. Bradford Town Plan, p. 70.
  15. Bradford Town Plan, p. 23.
  16. Bradford Town Plan, p. 30.
  17. Bradford Town Plan, p.29.
  18. Journal Opinion (newspaper) November 1, 2017
  19. Web site: Obituary, C. C. P. Baldwin (Unknown newspaper) . 1893 . Ancestry.com . Ancestry.com, LLC . Lehi, UT . March 8, 2020 . subscription . .
  20. Web site: New Hampshire Births and Christenings Index, 1714-1904, Entry for William Barron . Ancestry.com . Ancestry.com, LLC . Lehi, UT . February 2, 2020 . subscription . .
  21. Book: McKeen, Silas . 1875 . A History of Bradford, Vermont . Montpelier, VT . J. D. Clark & Son . 191–193 . . .
  22. Chaim M. Rosenberg, Yankee Colonies across America: Cities upon the Hills (Lexington Books, 2015), p. 74.
  23. Spencer C. Tucker, ""Clark, Charles Edgar" in The Encyclopedia of the Spanish–American and Philippine–American Wars: A Political, Social, and Military History, Vol. 1 (A-L) (ed. Spencer C. Tucker).
  24. Book: Myrick, Rawson C. . Rawson C. Myrick . 1941 . Vermont Legislative Directory and State Manual . Montpelier, VT . Vermont Secretary of State . 689 . Google Books.
  25. R.R. Bowker Co (2009). American Men & Women of Science. Thomson/Gale ISBN 9781414433059
  26. Book: McKean, Cornelius . 1902 . McKean Genealogies, from the Early Settlement of McKeans Or McKeens in America to the Present, 1902 . Des Moines, IA . Kenyon Printing & Mfg. Co. . 40 . Google Books.
  27. Douglas Martin, Ned O'Gorman, 84, Dies; Poet Founded Innovative Harlem School, New York Times (March 7, 2014).
  28. Caryn Hannan, Michigan Biographical Dictionary (2008-09 ed., Vol. 1: Somerset Publishers: 1998), p. 253.
  29. Book: Underwood, Lucien Marcus . 1913 . The Underwood Families of America . 1 . Lancaster, PA . New Era Printing Company . 1 . .
  30. Book: Bigelow, Walter J. . 1919 . Vermont, Its Government . Montpelier, VT . Historical Publishing Company . 12 . .
  31. https://www.loc.gov/item/n79115940/jay-wright/ Jay Wright (1935-)