Craftsbury, Orleans County, Vermont Genealogy

Brief History
The town of Craftsbury was chartered on August 23, 1781 by the Vermont Legislature and includes the four unincorporated villages of Craftsbury Common, Mill Village, North Craftsbury and East Craftsbury.

In the original charter, the town was named Minden. According to the legislative journals the town's name was changed from Minden to Craftsbury in November, 1790 because "from a similarity of sound the names of Lyndon and Mindon are often mistaken one for the other"; the Craftsbury name was chosen to honor the town's chief grantee and first settler.

The population at the 2010 US Census was 1206.

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


 * Branch Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Craftsbury Common Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Craftsbury Village Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * East Craftsbury Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.


 * Craftsbury Cemeteries List at FindAGrave
 * 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 Craftsbury, 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 Craftsbury:

City Directories
1884 Craftsbury Town Directory

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

Libraries and Historical Societies
Craftsbury Public Library 12 Church Street PO Box 74 Craftsbury Common, VT 05827 Phone: 802 586-9683 Email: craftsburylibrary@gmail.com Website: http://www.craftsburypubliclibrary.org/

Craftsbury Historical Society

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 Craftsbury:

1878 map of Craftsbury

1878 map of Craftsbury Town North, Craftsbury Town, Craftsbury Town East, Mill Village Town.

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 Craftsbury:

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

Town Histories

 * The founding families of Craftsbury, Vermont : a study of the relationships between the proprietors and the first settlers of the town - view a digital copy of this book online.
 * Craftsbury : a brief social history, by Daniel A Metraux (1977) - find this book in a library.
 * The History of Craftsbury Academy

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 Craftsbury town records available online:

Town Clerk Vital and Town Records, 1781-2005, can be found on FamilySearch (browse only images).

The Family History Library has microfilm of original records from the Craftsbury Town Clerk's Office. These include Deeds (Craftsbury, Vermont), 1792-1901.

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

Craftsbury Town Clerk 85 S Craftsbury Rd. PO Box 55 Craftsbury, VT 05826 Phone: (802) 586-2823 Email: craftsbury@gmail.com Website: http://www.townofcraftsbury.com/

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