Vergennes, Addison County, Vermont Genealogy

Guide to Vergennes, Addison ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.

Description
Vergennes, Vermont at Wikipedia

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.

Populated Places
Includes Neighborhoods, Villages, Unincorporated Communities, Districts, and Census-Designated Places:

Town Records
In New England most original vital records of birth, marriage, and death can be found at the town clerk's office

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

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

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

Resources
For more County and State resources see:

Biographies

 * Biographical Encyclopædia of Vermont of the Nineteenth Century. By H Clay Williams. Boston, Massachusetts: Metropolitan Publishing & Engraving Company, 1885. Salt Lake City, Utah : Family Search International, 2018. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
 * Biographical Sketches of Vermonters. By Vermont Historical Society. Montpelier, Vermont : Vermont Historical Society, c1947. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
 * Genealogical and Family History of the State of Vermont: A Record of the Achievements of Her People in the Making of a Commonwealth and the Founding of a Nation. By Hiram Carleton. New York, New York: Lewis Pub. Co., 1903. Online at:.
 * Some Vermont Ancestors: The Bicentennial Project of the Genealogical Society of Vermont. Compiled and ed. by Joann H. Nichols. [S.l.]: Genealogical Society of Vermont, 1976. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
 * The Vermont Historical Gazetteer: a Magazine Embracing a History of Each Town, Civil, Ecclesiastical, Biographical and Military. By ed. by Abby Maria Hemenway. Burlington, Vermont: A.M. Hemenway, 1868-1923. Online at:.
 * The Vermont of Today: With its Historic Background, Attractions and People. By Arthur F. Stone. New York, New York: Lewis Historical Pub. Co., c1929. Online at:.
 * Vermonters. By Dorman B.E. Kent. Tucson, Arizona: W.C. Cox & Co., 1974. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
 * Vermont Biography at FamilySearch Research Wiki

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.

City Directories

 * Various Dates U.S. City Directories, 1860-1960 at MyHeritage - index and images ($) some towns and years may be missing

Land Records

 * 1600s-1900s at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images; ''Also at: Ancestry ($),
 * Vermont Land and Property
 * 1774-1926 (*) Addison County (Vermont). County Clerk at FamilySearch Catalog - index & images
 * Vermont Land and Property

Local 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.

Maps
This selection incudes town, county, state, and historical maps
 * Boundary Map of Vergennes at HomeTownLocator
 * McConnell's Historical Maps of the United States at Library of Congress
 * Old Maps of Vermont at Old-Maps.com
 * Town of Vergennes at Vermont.org
 * Vergennes at FamilySearch Places
 * Vergennes at Google Maps
 * Vergennes at Mapcarta
 * Vermont Maps State Page


 * 1871 map of Vergennes City

Military
Searchable by Town Some Records are Searchable by Town

Revolutionary War, 1775-1783
For more Revolutionary War Military Records see:
 * Vermont Military Records - Revolutionary War, 1775-1783
 * United States Military Records - Revolutionary War, 1775-1783

Civil War, 1861-1865
For more Civil War Military Records see:
 * Vermont Military Records - Civil War, 1861-1865
 * United States Military Records - Civil War, 1861-1865

World War I, 1917-1918
For more World War I Military Records see:
 * Vermont Military Records - World War I, 1917-1918
 * United States Military Records - World War I, 1917-1918

World War II, 1941-1945
For more World War II Military Records see:
 * Vermont Military Records - World War II, 1941-1945
 * United States Military Records - World War II, 1941-1945

Newspapers
Addison County Independent ($) Burlington Free Press Rutland Herald

Other 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.

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:
 * 1749-1999 Vermont, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1749-1999 at Ancestry - index & images, ($)
 * 1800-1921 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * Vermont Probate Records

Libraries
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

Family History Centers & Affiliate Libraries

 * Essex Vermont Family History Center
 * Montpelier Vermont Family History Center
 * Rutland Vermont Family History Center
 * South Royalton Vermont Family History Center
 * Bath Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Thornton Public Library - New Hampshire - an affiliate library
 * Vermont French-Canadian Genealogical Society - an affiliate library

Societies
Vergennes Vermont Historical Society Website: Vergennes Historical Society