Springfield-The Precision Valley

Springfield History

The Town of Springfield, Vermont, was granted a charter in 1761 by Benning Wentworth, then governor of the Province of New Hampshire. Located in the Connecticut River Valley near the junction of the Black River, Springfield attracts many tourists, sports enthusiasts and permanent homeseekers.

The town's original acreage of above 25,000 acres was divided into sixty-eight equal shares. Every grantee was obliged to cultivate five acres of land within five years for every fifty acres owned. Within the township, no white or pine tree fit for a ship's mast could be felled without a special license, the penalty being forfeiture of the grant. All such trees were reserved for the ships and masts of the Royal Navy.

Prior to the charter of Springfield, a settlement had grown up in Eureka, just north of the present town. However, as no water power was available in that district, people began to move down from the hills around 1790 to settle on what is now called, "The Common." The falls of the Black River, now in the center of town, were a great attraction. The Indians called them "Comtu," meaning great noise, and traveled long distances to see the water pour over the rocks.

Springfield's earliest industry was a sawmill built in 1774. By 1890, the Town of Springfield had a population of 2,032 persons. Vermont's oldest schoolhouse (Eureka) was built here in 1785 and was used continuously until 1900. It has been authentically reconstructed on Routes 11 and 106 and is an Official Historical Site.