Orleans, Vermont

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Orleans, Vermont
Orleans, Vermont (Vermont)
Orleans, Vermont
Orleans, Vermont
Location within the state of Vermont
Coordinates: 44°48′31″N 72°12′15″W / 44.80861, -72.20417
Country United States
State Vermont
County Orleans
Area
 - Total 0.7 sq mi (1.8 km²)
 - Land 0.7 sq mi (1.8 km²)
 - Water 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km²)
Elevation 1,191 ft (363 m)
Population (2000)
 - Total 826
 - Density 1,204.2/sq mi (464.9/km²)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 - Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 05860
Area code(s) 802
FIPS code 50-53575[1]
GNIS feature ID 1458854[2]

Orleans is a village in Barton, Orleans County, Vermont, USA. The population was 826 at the 2000 census, the largest village in Orleans County.[3]

Contents

[edit] Government

Like all Vermont incorporated villages, the government is run directly by the people at the village meeting held on the second Tuesday of March. They elect all officers including those in the Fire Department.

Officers:

  • Moderator (runs March village meeting. Elected each year) - Bill Davies[4]
  • Trustee - Larry Wilcox
  • Trustee - Gerry Martel
  • Trustee - Eric Lanou
  • Clerk - Shelia Martin
  • Tax Collector - Shelia Martin
  • Treasurer - John Parry
  • First Auditor - Glenn Austin
  • Second Auditor - Eliza Walters
  • Third Auditor - Kristin Atwood
  • Tree Warden - John Morley II
  • Fire chief (elected) - E. J. Rowell
  • First assistant engineer (elected) - Ronald Hoyt
  • Second assistanc engineer (elected) - Edmund Girard
  • Village Manager (appointed by Trustees) - John Morley III

Taxes for 2008 - $283,000.

[edit] Education

The expenditure per pupil for 2008 is $12, 099.42.

[edit] Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 0.7 square miles (1.8 km²), all of it land.

At the edge of the village, the Willoughby River Falls is a 200-foot long stretch of river with cascades and a chute. In spring trout migrate up the river and falls from Lake Memphremagog.[5]

[edit] Demographics

The village showed a gain in population in 2000, the first since 1940.

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 826 people, 364 households, and 228 families residing in the village. The population density was 1,204.2 people per square mile (462.2/km²). There were 400 housing units at an average density of 583.1/sq mi (223.8/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 97.82% White, 0.12% African American, 0.36% Native American, 0.48% Asian, and 1.21% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.36% of the population.

There were 364 households out of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.3% were married couples living together, 9.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.1% were non-families. 33.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.84.

In the village the population was spread out with 25.2% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 25.4% from 25 to 44, 23.7% from 45 to 64, and 18.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 99.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.1 males.

[edit] Economy

[edit] Personal Income

The median income for a household in the village was $26,131, and the median income for a family was $34,583. Males had a median income of $25,789 versus $21,750 for females. The per capita income for the village was $15,318. About 11.6% of families and 12.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.2% of those under age 18 and 12.5% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Industry

Ethan Allen Manufacturing employs about 400 workers locally.[6] In 2005 the plant was valued at $7,048,200 and was sited on 85 acres.[7]

[edit] Media

Christian Ministries owns radio station W243AE which broadcasts out of Orleans on 96.5 FM.[8]

[edit] Electricity

Orleans operates its own Electric Department which transmits power to not only the village and some nearby residents in the town of Barton but users in West Brownington and East Irasburg as well. It has 665 customers.[9][10][11] It does not generate power but puchases it in bulk. One of their contracts is expiring in 2007 which charged the village 4 cents a kilowatt hour (KWH). A new contract for 2008 and is expected to cost 9 cents/KWH.[12]

[edit] Transportation

[edit] Major Routes

The opening of the Interstate north on November 9, 1972 and opening south in 1978 had an impact on the town comparable to the opening of the railway a century earlier.[13]

During the April school vacation since at least 1983, the village has hired school children to clean the village streets for one day as part of a village "spring cleaning."[14]

[edit] Bridges

Willoughby Falls Bridge needed replacing in 2007. It will cost $1.6 million. The village must contribute 10% ($160,000). This was the most expensive state project in Orleans County that year.[15]

[edit] Local community public and private transportation

Vermont Transit services Orleans.[16]

[edit] Railroads

While the Washington County Railroad (The Vermont Railway System) runs through Orleans, it does not service the town.

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ a b American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  2. ^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  3. ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_U.S._Census_Totals_for_Orleans_County%2C_Vermont#1930
  4. ^ Creaser, Richard (March 21, 2007). Orleans Village Meeting is brief and orderly. The Chronicle. 
  5. ^ http://www.anr.state.vt.us/dec//waterq/planning/docs/pl_basin17.assessment_report.pdf retrieved August 9, 2007
  6. ^ http://vtwoodnet.org/news_articles/ethan_allen_power_plant.htm
  7. ^ Reppraisal of the Town of Barton, Vermont, July 6, 2005
  8. ^ Barton, Vermont (VT) Detailed Profile - relocation, real estate, travel, jobs, hospitals, schools, crime, news, sex offenders
  9. ^ Electric Utilities List : Electric : Vermont Department of Public Service
  10. ^ "Customers" refers to number of hookups, not individuals
  11. ^ http://www3.digitalfrontier.com/essential_wc5/vppsa/uploads/PubPowPres.pdf
  12. ^ Creaser, Richard (October 24, 2007). Village electric rates will climb 10 percent. the Chronicle. 
  13. ^ Young, Darlene (1998). A history of Barton Vermont. Crystal Lake Falls Historical Association. 
  14. ^ Creaser, Richard. (April 16, 2008). Students hit the village streets. the Chronicle. 
  15. ^ Creaser, Richard (November 14, 2007). The bridges of Orleans County await repair. the Chronicle. 
  16. ^ Bus service

[edit] References

  • Darrell Hoyt (1985). Sketches of Orleans, Vermont. Mempremagog Press. ISBN 0-9610860-2-5. 

[edit] External links

Coordinates: 44°49′00″N, 72°13′58″W