Brighton, Essex County, Vermont Genealogy

Brief History
Brighton was chartered on August 13, 1781. Brlghton has had three names. It was originally granted by Vermont in 1780 to a group of Connecticut men as Gilead. Following the lapse of the Gilead grant, the town was bought by a different group, this time, the town was was named Random. Latter-day residents came to feel that the Random name did nothing to attract either settlers or business to their town, so the legislature changed the name to Brighton in 1832, when the town's population was just over 100. The population at the 2010 US Census was 1,222.

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


 * Lakeside Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * New Protestant Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Old Catholic Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.


 * at FamilySearch Catalog
 * Essex 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 Brighton, 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 Brighton:

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

Libraries and Historical Societies
Island Pond Public Library 49 Mill St. Island Pond, VT 05846 Phone: (802) 723-6134

Island Pond Historical Society Inc Island Pond, VT 05846 Phone: (802) 723-5983

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 Brighton:

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

The probate district for Brighton is Essex. Essex Probate Court Main St. Box 426 Island Pond, VT 05846 Phone: (802) 723-4770

Town Histories
History of Island Pond, Vermont.

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 Brighton town records available online:

Town Clerk Vital and Town Records, 1915 -1967, can be found on FamilySearch (browse only images).

The Family History Library has microfilm of original records from the Brighton Town Clerk's Office. These include Vital records of Brighton, Vermont, 1856, 1866-2000, [https://familysearch.org/search/catalog/1195245 Town record book of Brighton, Vermont, 1832-1865, including vital records, 1809-ca. 1865], and Land records, 1832-1907.

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

Brighton Town Office 49 Mill St. PO Box 377 Island Pond, VT 05846 Phone: (802) 723-4405 Website: http://www.islandpond.com/brighton.htm

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