The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1916-01-04
Written in Competition by
Pupil in St. MichaePs
ParOchial School
WINNER WAS MISS
HELEN FRANCES MANN
Unsigned Compositions Were Submit
ted to Judge Outside School and
Award Made on Merits-Much Infor-
nation Concerning State.


IN the eighth and ninth grades in the
Parochial school who would write the
best composition on Vermont. The
were unsigned and were
Judged by a person outside the school,
who did not know by whom they were
written. The prize was won by Miss
Helen Frances Mann, daughter of Mr..
and Mrs. Charles F. Mann. She spent |
much time and energy in gathering the
and putting it together, and |
her composition contains SO much in |
formation about the state that it is |
printed herewith in its entirety:
Vermont is in the north eastern part
of the United States and in the north
west corner of New England, being
one of the six New England states. 1t
is bounded on the north by the Do
miniDn of Canada, on the east by New
Hampshire on the south by Massa
chusetts and on the west by Lake
Champlain and New York.
1t has an area of nine thousand five
hundred and ffty-six square miles, of
which four hundred thirty-six square
miles is water. 1t is situated between
latitude AZ degrees, A minutes and As
degrees 43 seconds north and between
longitude II degrees 33 minutes and
length from extreme north to south is
one hundred fifty-eight miles. The
width Of the northern border is ninety
miles and the southern border is forty
miles.
The early French explorers gave the
state its name in honor of Able de
Vermont. The state flower is the red
clover and its selection was approved
by the legislature of 1894.
Vermont was admitted to the Union
March 4, 1871, the first state to be
added to the union of the original thir-
teen states. and was therefore the
fourteenth state to be admitted 1t
was twelfth in population at the time
| For thirteen years before being adj
mitted to the Union Vermont was an
Independent state with her own form
of government. Her declaration of in
dependence was made at meeting
held in Westminster January Is, 1771,
and at that time 1t was decided to call
the state New Connecticut. At a Later
meeting held in june of the same year
i in Windsor, the action of the West
minister meeting was reaffirmed with
/ the exception that the name of the
/ state be Vermont.
! The population in 1761 was twenty
two, the families of six actual settlers
land landowners in Bennington. The
first census taken in 1871 showed that
the state had a population of eighty
FIVE thousand four hundred ninety
nine, and ten years later this was near
ly doubled. The state gained rapidly
in population up to 1850, and since
that time the increase has been slow
In 1910 the total population wa:
three hundred fifty-fve thousand nine
hundred ffty-six.
Five rivers flow westerly and north
erlv into Lake Champlain, three t
Lake Memphremagog, on the Canadian
border, eleven are tributaries to thu
Connecticut on the east, while tw'
flow in southern direction to tn
Hudson. These rivers furnish valu
able waterpower for manufacturing
The scenery is everywhere attractiv
, and beautiful.
The Green Mountains, which extern
: through the state in north and soutl
direction, lie little west of the gee
graphical center The highest noun
tain peak is Mount Mansfield with a
elevation of over four thousand fee
above sea level, the second highest |
: Mount Killington; others are Jay
Camel 5 Hump anu LlhCoiH.
g Vermont contains six cities and tw
t hundred and forty organized towns
: The cities are Burlington, the larges
: city in the state, Rutland, the home Q
! the marble industry, Montpelier, tn
: eanital Of the state, St. Adams, We
gennes, the Oldest city in New Ems
land. one of three oldest in the Unite
States. and Barre, the granite cente
of the country.
g There are three hundred lakes an
It ponds in the state Lake Champlai
t with length of over one hundre
|. miles and width of ten to twelve mile
a is the largest body of fresh water
= the United States with the exceptio
: Of the Great Lakes and one lake
= Florida.
Tie state is famous for its dail
: products and its maple sugar, for
t. Morgan horses and Black Merir
< sheep. 1t leads the world in produ
If ton of marble and finer grades
< granite. 1t ranks first in the Unite
d States in production of asbestos al
IT second in the output of Stat
and is excelled by only re
e states in available waterpower.
The value of the rock products
:, Vermont is exceeded only by the sta
II Of Pennsylvania It's marble outp
of the finer quality for monument
and ornamental work consists OF NV
sixths of the entire amount III til
b. country and in beauty and varie
ID of its coloring and purity OF its VIII
" products is unsurpassed in the wor
A. Since the first quarry opened IN L!
. the marble business has been CARR
. on continuously, and today germo
:. :, leads the world in capital invested, I
I men employed and the value OF
% output. The largest quarrles IN
state are in West Rutland and Pr
tor.
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