Vergennes, Addison County, Vermont Genealogy

Brief History
Although Vergennes was settled as early as 1766 when Donald McIntosh built a homestead on Comfort Hill overlooking the Otter Creek Falls, most of the inhabitants left the county during the period from 1766 to 1783 when boundary disputes with New York and the Revolutionary War made peaceful settlement impossible. After 1783 the population expanded rapidly, and by 1787 it was evident the falls, with its milling and shipping activities, was very different from the outlying agricultural communities. In 1788, residents of the three bordering towns agreed to give up a portion of their land to establish a separate village on the Otter Creek Falls.

On September 19, 1788, Vergennes was incorporated as a city, the third in the new nation and the first in the state. It is the only one of Vermont's cities not to have been first chartered as a town or independant village. Its name was suggested by Ethan Allen to honor the Comte de Vergennes, French minister of foreign affairs and negotiator of the Treaty of Paris.

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


 * Prospect Cemetery - inscriptions found at Find A Grave site.
 * Saint Peters Cemetery - inscriptions found at Find A Grave site.
 * Vergennes Burying Ground (Old Vergennes Cemetery) - inscriptions found at Find A Grave site.


 * Vergennes Cemeteries List at FindAGrave
 * at FamilySearch Catalog
 * Addison 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 Vergennes, 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 Vergennes:

Marriage book of Wm. Putnam Rallson, FHL Collection (records of marriages for Vergennes, VT. 1888-1892) - available on microfilm at the Family History Library.

St. Paul's Episcopal Church Records, 1833-1915 - available on microfilm at the Family History Library. Includes: Historical notes List of ministers Records of baptisms 1833-1915 Families, confirmations, communicants, marriages 1835-1915 Burials 1835-1914 Contributions and offerings List of meetings

Saint Peter's Roman Catholic Church, Vermont French-Canadian Genealogical Society. Includes: Marriage repertoire, 1856-1947 - find this book in a library. Baptism repertoire1855-1945 - find this book in a library.

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

Libraries and Historical Societies
Bixby Memorial Library 58 Main Street Vergennes, Vermont 05491 Phone: 802-877-2211 Email: bixby_verg@vals.state.vt.us Website: Bixby Library Note: Genealogy in the Vermont Collection

Vergennes Vermont Historical Society Website: Vergennes Historical Society

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

1871 map of Vergennes City

Newspapers
Addison County Independent ($)

Burlington Free Press

Rutland Herald

Probate Records
The probate district for Vergennes is Addison. Addison Probate Court 7 Mahady Court Middlebury, VT 05753 Phone: (802) 388-2612

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

Town Histories
Vergennes, Vermont and the War of 1812, by Norman Ansley, Richard K Adams, Arthur B Cohn, and Kevin James Crisman (1999) - find this book in a library.

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 Vergennes town records available online:

at FamilySearch (browse only images).

The Family History Library has microfilm of original records from the Vergennes City Clerk's Office. These include Records of births, marriages, and deaths, 1857-1999; indexes to births, marriages, deaths, 1770-1999.

Vergennes City Clerk 120 Main St. PO Box 35 Vergennes, VT 05491 Phone: (802) 877-2841 Website: Vergennes

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.