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The story starts with a visit by Samuel de Champlain in 1609 to the area that would become Vermont. The “Father of New France” traveled all over the northern part of the continent and is responsible for many current place names. Vermont’s section of the Appalachians were called “les monts verts” (the Green Mountains) by Champlain; he obviously named Lake Champlain, too. Eventually the French phrase was modified to become the name of the state but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

By the time Champlain arrived many of the area’s original inhabitants, the Abenaki, had been forcibly removed by Mohicans, a tribe of the Iroquois. It was the first of many struggles for ownership of the land now known as Vermont.

In 1666 the French were the first to settle in the area. The first English settlement wasn’t until 1724. In both cases the settlements were military in nature with each country staking a claim on the land. As so often happened back then, war ensued. The French and Indian War officially ended with France ceding all of its territory east of the Mississippi River to Great Britain in 1763. Upon hearing of the acquisition of new land near their borders, both the New Hampshire and New York colonies began issuing land grants for settlement.

Obviously, no one wants to pay for their property twice so soon another territorial conflict arose. The settlers felt New York treated them unfairly and they applauded the creation of essentially a guerrilla force (they had no legal authority) to protect their interests from the hated “Yorkers.” In 1770 the Green Mountain Boys were organized by Ethan Allen, his two brothers Ira and Levi, and his cousins Seth Warner and Remember Baker. These men were substantially invested in the new territory so their willingness to fight for it is understandable. The province of New York labeled them as outlaws and issued warrants for their arrests. As it turned out, the entire country benefitted from the formation of the Green Mountain Boys.

Enter the next big fight for territory, the American Revolution. When Ethan learned of the start of the war he said, “On the first systematical and bloody attempt at Lexington, to enslave America, thoroughly electrified my mind, and fully determined me to take part with my country.” Shortly after the war began, a patriotic Ethan and his Green Mountain Boys set out to attack British-held Fort Ticonderoga. En route they met up with Benedict Arnold who had official orders to attack (unlike the Green Mountain Boys) but no men. A compromise was quickly reached where the two men shared command of the successful mission. The capture of Fort Ticonderoga supplied General Washington’s young army with much needed munitions and the famous canons that forced the British out of Boston.

Though Ethan and the Green Mountain Boys continued to fight for America’s independence they became increasingly annoyed with the newly established Continental Congress who refused to recognize the Republic of Vermont. After being repulsed by Great Britain, New York, New Hampshire, and the fledgling United States, Ethan Allen sought recognition of the independent land by trying to make a deal with what would become Canada. All of larger-than-life Ethan’s work paid off when Congress admitted Vermont to the union as the 14th state in 1791. With the question of independence finally settled we can now discuss some of Vermont’s claims to fame.

In 1788, a young school teacher by the name of Justin Morgan settled in the Republic of Vermont, bringing with him a colt. Figure was a small but able horse given to Morgan as payment of a debt. Before long this capable animal outcompeted all other horses in the area in many categories. His famed abilities led to his demand as a stud—everybody wanted to breed their horse to Morgan’s horse. Figure and his versatile offspring became one of the first horse breeds developed in the United States. The Morgan is now the official state animal of Vermont.

The next prominent figures to enter the picture were both born in Vermont just a few years apart, Brigham Young and Joseph Smith (1801 and 1805 respectively). Smith didn’t live in the state for long as his family moved to New York shortly after his birth. It was there that Smith received a vision that told him to establish the Mormon religion. Young stayed in Vermont a bit longer but by 1832 he had converted and followed Smith to Ohio where he became his most ardent supporter. Their story continued to unfold out West but back to Vermont.

In 1813 the state gave birth to Stephen A. Douglas. Douglas grew up in Vermont but in 1833 he moved to Illinois to begin his career as a politician. Douglas is most famous for his debates with Abraham Lincoln, which won him a Senate seat yet ultimately set the stage for Lincoln’s rise to the Presidency. It must have been quite a sight to see the forceful 5’4” “Little Giant” (as he was known) and the calm 6’4” Lincoln sharing the same stage!

Speaking of Presidents, Vermont produced two of them, Chester A. Arthur in 1829 and Calvin Coolidge in 1872. Well, maybe two. Turns out there is no official record of Arthur being born in Vermont, or anywhere else for that matter. In fact, as his political rivals pointed out, the Arthur family was residing in Canada near the time of Chester’s birth. Arthur never directly answered the question and there was a lot at stake; the U.S. Constitution clearly states that the Presidency can only be held by natural born U.S. citizens. The times were different back then, can you imagine if that came up in today’s elections? The question would have to be answered, no matter what. There are no such concerns about Coolidge as his birth is well-documented. In fact, he is the only U.S. President to have been born on the fourth of July. Pretty nifty piece of trivia, eh?

Another famous Vermont resident is Rudyard Kipling. Amazingly enough, the Brit, born in India, lived in Brattleboro from 1892 to 1896 with his young wife and their two small girls. While in the state Kipling wrote arguably his most famous pieces, The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book. I loved those books as a kid, and the Disney movie, too:

Look for the bare necessities
The simple bare necessities
Forget about your worries and your strife

What an awesome way to look at life!

Vermont’s modern day claims to fame are food related: maple syrup and dairy products. The state is the largest U.S. producer of maple syrup, pretty impressive for the second largest state in New England! As for dairy, the state’s many dairy farms produce over two billion pounds of milk every year. (No, it’s not a typo, they actually report these statistics in pounds not gallons, I don’t know why.) No wonder that the state is home to the award-winning Cabot Cheese factory and the ever inventive Ben and Jerry’s ice cream company.

Although famous for food, one of Vermont’s largest industries is tourism. Even though the state is the only one in New England without a piece of the Atlantic coast each season draws throngs of tourists. Well, maybe not Spring, or “Mud Season” as they call it up here, when the snow starts to melt but definitely in summer. Known as the “Hiker Season”, summer sees families escaping the heat and crowds of other states. In the fall, “Leaf Peeping Season”, roads are clogged as visitors enjoy nature’s colorful displays. Winter or “Ski Season” is probably the busiest time of the year and thanks to the invention of snow makers, the season now lasts longer than ever.

A few other things that might help you get a feel for the state. Burlington, on Lake Champlain, is the largest city with close to 39,000 residents. Mount Mansfield is the highest point in Vermont at 4,393’. Lake Champlain delineates part of Vermont’s border with New York as the Connecticut River separates it from New Hampshire. In an unusual case, New Hampshire owns the entire width of the Connecticut River, all the way to the Vermont shore. Most water borders like Lake Champlain are split down the middle. Perhaps its a result of those early years when New Hampshire dominated Vermont.

Here’s an old anecdote that might help you understand Vermonters:

Definition of a Yankee: For foreigners, a Yankee is an American. For American Southerners, a Yankee is a Northerner. For Northerners, a Yankee is someone from New England. For New Englanders, a Yankee is somebody from Vermont. For Vermonters, a Yankee is somebody who eats apple pie for breakfast.