Westmore, Orleans County, Vermont Genealogy

Brief History
Westmore was chartered on August 17, 1781 by the Vermont Legislature. Originally named Westford, which confused everyone, because there had been a Westford in Chittenden County since Benning Wentworth granted it in 1763. Nobody has ever been able to come up with any explanation as to why the duplicate name was used in the first place, nor why it took six years for the error to be corrected by changing the name to Westmore.

Hilly, even mountainous, Westmore never attracted many settlers, with 1880 being the big census year with 485 residents. The town contains one unincorporated village clustered around Lake Willoughby. The population was 350 at the 2010 US census.

Cemeteries
The following is a list of major cemeteries in present-day Westmore. For location of all cemeteries, see Cemeteries of Vermont, Orleans County, website at this link.


 * Lakeview Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.


 * Westmore Cemeteries List at FindAGrave
 * at FamilySearch Catalog
 * at FamilySearch Catalog
 * Orleans County Cemeteries at FamilySearch Places

Church Records
Historically, the largest religious groups in Vermont were the Congregational, Baptist, Roman Catholic, and Methodist churches. For general information about Vermont denominations, view the New Hampshire Church Records wiki page. To see the churches in Westmore, visit. Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death date. The following are church records available online for the town of Westmore:

City Directories
1884 Westmore Town Directory

Land Records
The following are online land records for the town of Westmore:

Westmore,Vermont Land Records,1853 to 1907, can be found on FamilySearch (browse only images)

Libraries and Historical Societies
Northeast Kingdom Genealogy - Genealogy resources for towns in the counties of Essex, Orleans and Caledonia.

Maps
The following are online maps of the town of Westmore:

1878 map of Westmore

Military Records
Westmore, Vermont Enrolled Militia Records, 1863-1867, can be found on - How to Use this Collection.

Newspapers
The Newport Daily Express

Probate Records
In Vermont, most probate records are kept at the town level. The following are online probate records for the town of Westmore:

Orleans Probate Division 247 Main Street Newport, VT · 05855 Phone: (802) 334-3305

Town Histories
Willoughby Lake, Vermont - History of the WilloughVale Inn &amp; Cottages

Town Records
In Vermont, most records are kept at the town level and generally began being kept at the founding of the town. These records may include the following: The following are Westmore town records available online:

The Family History Library has microfilm of original records from the Westmore Town Clerk's Office. These include Vital records of Westmore, Vermont, 1805-1952, and Land records, v. 1-2, 1803-1853.

Westmore Town Clerk 54 Hinton Hill Road Orleans, VT 05860 Phone: (802) 525-3007 Email: clerk@westmoreonline.org Website: http://westmoreonline.org/

Town Clerk
The town clerk is responsible for these records, and so most originals can be found at the town clerk's office.

Vital Records
FamilySearch Historical Records Collection has Vermont birth, death, and marriage records online.