Springfield is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,062.

History

One of the New Hampshire grants, the township was chartered on August 20, 1761, by Governor Benning Wentworth and awarded to Gideon Lyman and 61 others. Although Springfield's alluvial flats made it among the best agricultural towns in the state, the Black River falls, which drop in , helped it develop into a mill town. Springfield was located in the center of the Precision Valley region, home of the Vermont machine tool industry.

In 1888, the Jones and Lamson Machine Tool Company (J&L) moved to Springfield from Windsor, Vermont under the successful leadership of James Hartness. Gaining international renown for precision and innovation, J&L ushered in a new era of precision manufacturing in the area. Edwin R. Fellows co-founded the Fellows Gear Shaper Company here in 1896. As knowledge and infrastructure grew to support precision machining, other companies such as the Bryant Chucking Grinder Company and Lovejoy Tool formed, grew, and provided much of the economic engine.

Springfield Telescope Makers, the oldest amateur telescope making club in the United States, has been based in Springfield since its inception in 1923 by Russell W. Porter. The club's pink clubhouse at the Stellafane Observatory was built in 1923 on Breezy Hill, just south of Springfield village, and has hosted an annual convention for astronomers and telescope makers nearly every summer since 1926. Many notable figures in the fields of astronomy and space exploration have attended the convention over the years.

During World War II, Springfield's production of machine tools was of such importance to the American war effort that the US government ranked Springfield (together with the Cone Automatic Machine Company of nearby Windsor) as the seventh most important bombing target in the country.

Springfield is also home to the Eureka Schoolhouse, the oldest one-room school in the state of Vermont. Completed in 1790, the building was in continuous use until 1900 and was restored in 1968 by the Vermont Board of Historic Sites. The school house was named by its first teacher, David Searle, who, after a long journey through the new frontier was heard to cry "Eureka!" upon reaching the new settlement of Springfield. The name stuck, and "Eureka" can still be found in street and business names throughout Springfield.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which is land and (0.30%) is water. Bounded on the east by the Connecticut River, Springfield is drained by the Black River, which flows directly through downtown. The town includes the village of North Springfield.

Demographics

As of the census

  • Springfield Art and Historical Society
  • The Stellafane National Historic Landmark
  • Gould's Mill Bridge, a steel truss bridge (NRHP).
  • Elm Hill Elementary
  • Union Street Elementary
  • Riverside Middle School
  • Springfield High School

Colleges

Satellite campuses of the Community College of Vermont and the University of Vermont are located in Springfield, as well as River Valley Technical Center, a regional technical college.

The Black River Innovation Campus is offers co-working space, entrepreneurship programs, STEAM education, and technology resources.

Media

Springfield is home to its own TV station known as SAPA TV. It broadcasts local info, as well as interviews with local bands, business owners, etc.

Infrastructure

Health care

The Springfield Hospital is located in Springfield.

Transportation

Springfield is intersected by Interstate 91, U.S. Route 5 and Vermont routes 10, 11, 106 and 143. Connecticut River Transit provides bus service.

Notable people

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  • Daric Barton, first baseman with the Oakland Athletics
  • George B. Burrows, Wisconsin state legislator <!--born-->
  • Henry W. Closson, U.S. Army brigadier general
  • George M. Darrow, foremost American authority on strawberries <!--born-->
  • Edwin R. Fellows, machine-tool inventor, industrialist
  • Walbridge A. Field, U.S. Representative
  • Helen Hartness Flanders, collector of American folk music
  • Ralph Flanders, machine-tool entrepreneur, banker, senator
  • John Elliot Goodenow, politician in Iowa
  • Albert Lovejoy Gutterson, Olympic gold medalist (long jump)
  • James Hartness, inventor, aviator and 58th governor of Vermont
  • Dudley C. Haskell, U.S. Representative
  • Charles B. Hoard, U.S. Representative <!--born-->
  • Bill Jackowski, professional baseball umpire <!--died-->
  • Joseph B. Johnson, 70th governor of Vermont
  • Kenny Johnson, film and television actor
  • Pattrice Jones, ecofeminist writer, educator, and activist<!--lives-->
  • James Kochalka, local cartoonist and rock musician
  • Lewis R. Morris, U.S. Representative <!--lived-->
  • Levi P. Morton, 22nd Vice President of the United States
  • Alban J. Parker, Vermont Attorney General <!--lived-->
  • Samuel B. Pettengill, U.S. Representative <!--died-->
  • Russell W. Porter, explorer, artist and telescope innovator
  • Asahel Lynde Powers, painter <!--born-->
  • Paul W. Ruse Jr., Vermont State Treasurer <!--born-->
  • Edwin W. Stoughton, lawyer and diplomat <!--born-->
  • James Bates Thomson, mathematician, educator, and author <!--born-->
  • Wheelock G. Veazey, attorney, judge, and government official <!--lived-->
  • Louis G. Whitcomb, United States Attorney for Vermont<!--lived-->

On July 10, 2007, Springfield was selected to host the premiere of The Simpsons Movie, which, like the Simpsons TV show, is set in a town called Springfield. In a Fox competition, Vermont was chosen to host the opening for over 13 other places around the nation called Springfield.

References

  • Town of Springfield official website
  • Springfield Vermont Chamber of Commerce