Pownal, Bennington County, Vermont Genealogy

Brief History
Pownal was the first town Benning Wentworth granted after the French and Indian wars and it was chartered on January 8, 1760. Thomas and John Pownall were both listed on the charter but the final l in their name was left off and also left off of the name of the town in the charter.

Two Presidents taught school in Pownal at the beginning of their careers. Chester A. Arthur educated Pownal youth as did James A. Garfield. When Garfield was assassinated in 1881, Arthur succeeded him as President. A marker was placed near the North Pownal Congregational church in 1958 to note this fact.

Pownal was the site of Vermont's only racetrack. The racetrack was a horse track until 1976, when it then switched to greyhounds. It permanently closed in 1992.

Cemeteries
The following is a list of cemeteries in present-day Pownal. For location of cemeteries, see Cemeteries of Vermont, Bennington County, website at this link.

The Pownal Historical Scoiety has provided information and some grave stone inscriptions for several of these cemeteries at their website.


 * Eldred Cemetery (aka Fowler Farm Cemetery) - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Gardner Cemetery (aka Gardner Historical Cemetery) - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Lovett Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Mason Hill Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Morgan-Towslee Cemeter - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * North Pownal Yard Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Oak Hill Cemeter - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Potter Cemetery(aka William Arnold Farm Cemetery) - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Potter Cemetery (aka Eunice Wilcox Farm Cemetery) - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Pownal Center Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Sherman Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Woodland Cemetery (aka J. Wilcox Farm Cemetery) - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.


 * Pownal Cemeteries List at FindAGrave
 * at FamilySearch Catalog
 * at FamilySearch Catalog
 * Bennington 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 Pownal, 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 Pownal:

Pownal's church history from 1760 to 1840 - A Time for Building Churches Pownal from the book " A Vermont Town's Two Hundred Years And More." (Courtesy of the Pownal Historical Society)

Pownal Church History After 1840 - Courtesy of the Pownal Historical Society

City Directories
1880 - 1881 Pownal directory

Historical Data
The Vermont Historical Gazetteer is a 5 volume set of historical information by Abby Maria Hemenway with Volume I published in 1867 and Volume V completed in 1891 after her death. Also available online in PDF format at this link.

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

Libraries and Historical Societies
Solomon Wright Library 97 Main Street PO Box 400 Pownal, VT, 05261 Phone: (802) 823-5400 Email: pownal_pub@vals.state.vt.us Website: http://solomonwrightlibrary.org/

Pownal Historical Society Solomon Wright Public Library, Pownal, VT Mailing Address: PO Box 313, Pownal, VT 05261 Website: pownal.pbwiki.com Email: pownal@comcast.net Phone: (802) 823-5536 Contact: Ken Held, President, heldkw@comcast.net

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

1856 Map of Pownal

Newspapers
Bennington Banner Newspaper

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

The probate district for Pownal is Bennington. Bennington Probate Division 207 South St. Bennington, VT 05201 Phone: (802) 447-2705

Town Histories
Pownal: A Vermont Town's Two Hundred Years and More, Joseph Parks, Pownal Bicentennial Committee, 1977.

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 Pownal town records available online:

Digital images of Pownal Town records 1732-2005 are available online at FamilySearch.

Marriages in Pownal,Vermont to 1850 - available on the Pownal Historical Society Website.

Deaths in Pownal, VT from 1921-1980 - available on the Pownal Historical Society Website.

The Family History Library has microfilm of original records from the Pownal Town Clerks Office. These include Land records, 1750-1894; indexes to land records, 1760-1931, Town records, 1775-1903, and Records of births, marriages, and deaths, 1857-1994.

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

Pownal Town Clerk Mailing Address: P.O. Box 411 Pownal, VT 05261 Physical Address: 467 Center Street Pownal, VT 05261 Phone: (802) 823-7757 Email: powclerk@sover.net Website: http://www.pownal.org/TownOffice/TownOffice.html

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