Burlington in Vermont
Monday, 22 July 2019 - 11:00 am (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination: North America / NordamerikaCategory/Kategorie: General Reading Time: 9 minutes
Chittenden County Trust Company Building © Beyond My Ken/cc-by-sa-4.0
A regional college town, Burlington is home to the University of Vermont (UVM) and Champlain College, a small private college. Vermont’s largest hospital, the UVM Medical Center, is located within the city limits. The City of Burlington also has Vermont’s largest airport, the Burlington International Airport, in neighboring South Burlington. In 2015, Burlington became the first city in the U.S. to run entirely on renewable energy. In 1978, the ice cream enterprise Ben & Jerry’s was founded in Burlington in a renovated gas station. It became a national brand, with retail outlets in numerous cities.
Two theories have been put forward regarding the origin of Burlington’s name. The first is that it was named after Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington, and the second is that the name honors the politically prominent and wealthy Burling family of New York. While no Burling family members are listed as grantees of the town, the family held large tracts of land in nearby towns, some of which were granted on the same day as Burlington. One of the New Hampshire Grants, the land that was developed as Burlington was awarded by New Hampshire colonial governor Benning Wentworth on June 7, 1763, to Samuel Willis and 63 others. In the summer of 1775, settlers began clearing land and built two or three log huts, but the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War delayed permanent settlement until after its conclusion. In 1783, Stephen Lawrence arrived with his family. The town was organized in 1785.
The War of 1812 was unpopular in Vermont and New England, which had numerous trading ties with Canada. Neither Vermont nor other New England states provided militia units or financial support. Vermont voters supported the Federalist Party, which opposed the war. At one point during the war, the U.S. had 5,000 troops stationed in Burlington, outnumbering residents and putting a strain on resources. About 500 soldiers died of disease, which was always a problem due to poor sanitation in army camps. Some soldiers were quartered in the main building at the University of Vermont, where a memorial plaque commemorates them. In a skirmish on August 2, 1813, British forces from Canada shelled Burlington. This is described as either a bold stroke by the British with an ineffectual response from the Americans, or a weak sally by the British, which was rightly ignored by the Americans. The cannonade lasted about 10 minutes and caused no casualties. The American troops involved were commanded by Naval Lieutenant Thomas Macdonough, later hero of the Battle of Lake Champlain.
The town’s position on Lake Champlain helped it develop into a port of entry and center for trade, particularly after completion of the Champlain Canal in 1823, the Erie Canal in 1825, and the Chambly Canal in 1843. Wharves allowed steamboats to connect freight and passengers with the Rutland & Burlington Railroad and Vermont Central Railroad. Burlington became a bustling lumbering and manufacturing center and was incorporated as a city in 1865. Its Victorian era prosperity left behind much fine architecture, including buildings by Ammi B. Young, H.H. Richardson, and McKim, Mead & White. In 1870, the waterfront was extended by construction of the Pine Street Barge Canal. This became polluted over the years and was a focus for cleanup in 2009 under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency‘s Superfund program.
- Downtown: The city’s commercial hub is north of Maple Street, south of Pearl Street (including all properties along Pearl Street), and west of Willard Street.
- Hill Section: Burlington’s wealthiest neighborhood is east of U.S. Route 7 (Shelburne Road and South Willard Street) and south of U.S. Route 2 (Main Street), but excludes UVM and University Terrace, while including all of Champlain College. The Hill Section is where the Burlington Country Club is situated.
- The Intervale: The Intervale cannot be considered a neighborhood but is a large area encompassing many locally owned organic farms and natural preserves along the Winooski River. It is included on this list because its total area is larger than that of most neighborhoods in Burlington.
- New North End: Burlington’s most populous neighborhood, a northwest suburban extension of the city, includes all points north of Burlington High School, as well as Leddy Park, Ethan Allen Park and North Beach, and is west of Vermont Route 127 (the “Burlington Beltline”).
- Old North End: Burlington’s oldest and most densely populated neighborhood is north of all properties along Pearl Street, west of U.S. Routes 2 and 7, and is inclusive of areas south and east of the former site of Burlington College (but north of Downtown and west of the University District).
- South End: A once mostly industrial and now mostly artistic district south of Maple Street and west of U.S. Route 7 (Shelburne Street and South Willard Street), it includes the waterfront Oakledge Park and is home to the headquarters of many of Burlington’s nationally known companies like Burton Snowboards and Dealer.com.
- University District: The University District is east of Willard Street, north of Main Street, and south of Riverside Avenue. Surrounded on three sides by U.S. Route 2, it includes UVM and many former single-family homes converted to student and yuppie apartments (although these are everywhere throughout the city limits and metropolitan area).
The Church Street Marketplace, a four-block pedestrian mall in the heart of the city, is the site of festivals throughout the year. Events such as the “South End Art Hop” and public galleries such as Pine Street Art Works, provide a forum for the visual arts in the South End. The American Planning Association named the Marketplace one of America’s “Great Public Spaces” for 2008. A “Festival of Fools” had an estimated 25,000 attendees at the Marketplace in 2009. The “Vermont Brewers Festival” had 9,600 attendees in 2009, and the “Giant Pumpkin Regatta and Festival” had 5,000 attendees that same year; Saturday Night Live satirized the event. One of the largest year-round farmers’ markets in the state of Vermont is located in the city.
Dragon boat races to benefit charity have been held in Lake Champlain in August since 2006. In 2009, there were approximately 2,000 participants on 86 teams. An annual First Night community celebration of the arts on New Year’s Eve was founded in 1983 with funding from the National Endowment on the Arts and Vermont Council on the Arts. Burlington was the third city to embrace the concept born in Boston. It ran for 35 years before shutting down in 2018. Burlington’s own drag troupe, the House of LeMay, performs several shows a year, hosts the annual “Winter is a Drag Ball,” and raises funds for numerous charities. The House of LeMay is the subject of the documentary, “Slingbacks and Syrup” which premiered at the 2008 Vermont International Film Festival in Burlington. The Emily Post Institute, an etiquette organization, is headquartered here.
Read more on Burlington, Church Street Marketplace, New England Today – Burlington, VermontVacation.com – Burlington, Wikivoyage Burlington and Wikipedia Burlington (Smart Traveler App by U.S. Department of State - Weather report by weather.com - Global Passport Power Rank - Travel Risk Map - Democracy Index - GDP according to IMF, UN, and World Bank - Global Competitiveness Report - Corruption Perceptions Index - Press Freedom Index - World Justice Project - Rule of Law Index - UN Human Development Index - Global Peace Index - Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index). Photos by Wikimedia Commons. If you have a suggestion, critique, review or comment to this blog entry, we are looking forward to receive your e-mail at comment@wingsch.net. Please name the headline of the blog post to which your e-mail refers to in the subject line.
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