Vermont

H

Civil War

About 35,000 Vermonters, more than 90 percent of them volunteers, fought for the Union and against slavery in the Civil War (1861-1865). No battles were fought on Vermont soil, but in October 1864 the northernmost action of the war occurred in Saint Albans, when a band of Confederate soldiers operating out of Canada crossed the border and robbed the town’s banks of $200,000.

I

Post Civil War Economics

Agriculture continued to decline after the war, but dairy farming grew steadily as the railroad provided an efficient way to ship cheese, butter, and milk. Western and European textile factories cut sharply into Vermont’s share of the wool market, although a few Vermont textile mills continued to produce blankets and other fine woolens for another century. Lumbering and wood production assumed the greatest importance in Vermont’s economy during the last half of the 19th century, and manufacturing began to increase as forges and factories turned out machine tools and other metal goods.

J

Vermont Republicanism

In 1878 Redfield Proctor was elected governor of Vermont, beginning a 70-year period in which his family and associates who were prominent in the granite and marble industries and railroads controlled the state Republican Party. In an era when the political machines in many states were run by corrupt bosses, the conservative Proctor organization was noted for its honesty and absence of scandals. Nonetheless, a more liberal anti-Proctor faction in the party consistently challenged the controlling segment in nominating conventions.

This more liberal wing of the Republican Party gained control of the state twice during the first half of the 20th century. The first period was from 1900 to 1916, the peak years of the progressive movement, which sought to curb abuses by governments and industry and to improve life for workers, immigrants, the poor, and other groups. During this period, Vermont passed laws to improve working conditions for women and children, to require factory safety inspections, and to compensate workers injured on the job. The Vermont Progressive Republican League formed in 1912, but in the presidential election that year, it could not carry the state for former president Theodore Roosevelt (1901-1909), who was the candidate of a third party, the progressive Bull Moose Party.

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The Republican Party’s liberal wing also held power from 1936 to 1940, when George D. Aiken served as governor, and from 1945 to 1956, when Aiken’s friend Ernest W. Gibson, Jr., successfully challenged the Proctor wing in the Republican primary and went on to serve as governor. From 1940 to 1975, Aiken served in the United States Senate, elected and reelected by large majorities. In the 1950s, although the Republican governors were conservative, Vermont reacted strongly against the extremism and anti-Communism espoused by Wisconsin senator Joseph McCarthy (see House Committee on Un-American Activities).

The Vermont tradition of thrift and self-reliance was a strong influence in the state’s brand of Republicanism. Vermont was one of the two states to vote for the Republican presidential candidate in 1912, William Howard Taft. The frugality and satisfaction with the status quo that was characteristic of Calvin Coolidge, a Vermonter who became president in 1923, was also typical of the state. When floods caused severe damage to buildings, roads, and railroads in 1927, Vermont refused federal aid until it had first financed road repairs by selling bonds worth $8.5 million; it then accepted the aid and repaid its debt rapidly. In 1936 Vermont again showed its independence by being one of two states to vote against the reelection of President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

K

Democratic Resurgence

Republican dominance of state politics ended in 1958 when Vermont elected its first Democratic congressman, William Meyer, followed by its first Democratic governor in 1962. In the decades that followed, Republicans and Democrats have alternated in the governor’s mansion. Patrick Leahy was the first Democrat to win election to the U.S. Senate from Vermont in 1974, and in 1990 Vermont elected a socialist independent, Bernard Sanders, as its only member in the U.S. House of Representatives. Democrat Howard Dean, the lieutenant governor who became governor in 1991 when the Republican incumbent died in office, was elected to his first full term in 1992 and reelected in 1994, 1996, 1998, and 2000. In 2002 Dean did not seek reelection. In 2003 he began an ultimately unsuccessful campaign to win the Democratic presidential nomination. In 2002 Republican Jim Douglas became governor. Douglas was reelected in 2004.

Vermont continued its independent tradition in 2000 when it became the first state to allow same-sex couples to form civil unions that carry all the rights and benefits of marriage. The measure was passed following a decision by the state Supreme Court that gay and lesbian couples were being unconstitutionally deprived of the rights of marriage.

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Economic Development after World War II

The demand for Vermont’s industrial products, especially machine tools and precision instruments produced in Windsor and Springfield, increased during World War II (1939-1945). However, the difficulty of obtaining some restricted raw materials slowed production and prevented industrial growth. After the war, industry grew steadily, although most businesses remained small. In the 1950s and 1960s, national firms bought small Vermont concerns to gain special patents or processes, and several large industrial companies, including International Business Machines (IBM), opened new factories in the state.

The recreation industry, which had its roots in the 1840s and revived under state government sponsorship during the 1930s, became a chief source of income after World War II. Stowe and other ski resorts in the Green Mountains became popular year-round recreation destinations.

Transportation remained inadequate, not only for the state’s own population and industries but also for tourists. No new railroads were built after the beginning of the century, and railroad passenger service proved unprofitable. In addition, there was not enough traffic from Vermont’s scattered towns to warrant extensive air service. Motor travel was hindered by the legislature’s reluctance to spend state money or to accept federal aid to build roads. Finally, in the late 1950s, a modern highway system was begun, culminating in the opening of two interstate highways in 1969 and 1970.

In the 1970s Vermont developed a strong environmental movement that was instrumental in the passage of various pollution and land control regulations. Billboards disappeared from Vermont highways in the mid-1960s. The legislature passed a sweeping land use law, Act 250, in 1970. It was one of the nation’s strictest development laws, requiring housing developments and ski resorts to meet ten environmental criteria. Vermont’s Clean Air Act levied a tax on new automobiles that get low gas mileage.

Since the 1960s, Vermont’s population has grown rapidly, with many new residents coming from New York and Massachusetts. The rise in computer-related industries, information technology, services, tourism, and small manufacturing and business have characterized much of the economic growth. At the same time, agriculture has declined and many farms have been sold and converted to homes and recreational land. Many Vermont farmers, manufacturers, craft workers, and businesses now look for and supply regional and national markets with specialty foods and products.

In the early 1990s, Vermont suffered from the nationwide recession. Many businesses, especially those with contracts for military and computer-related products, began declining, laying off workers, or closing. Vermont faced difficult economic and political choices as the costs of providing services to businesses and individuals rose and revenues from personal and business taxes leveled or declined. As social services and education became increasingly expensive, state and local governments scrutinized their budgets closely. Many towns rejected school budgets at town meetings and in special votes. Because schools have been supported from local property taxes, the legislature has debated whether to create a statewide property tax or adopt means to reduce the cost of education.

Tourism has become a major industry, emphasizing year-round recreational and cultural activities. This trend at times has conflicted with the state’s strong environmental protection laws, which safeguard natural and cultural resources and promote community and regional planning. In addition to recreational opportunities, “heritage tourism” has expanded, focusing on artistic, cultural, and historic attractions.

The history section of this article was contributed by Michael Sherman. The remainder of the article was contributed by Harold A. Meeks.

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