Chelsea, Vermont, New England USA
About Chelsea, Vermont
Orange County
Chartered: August 4, 1781 (Vermont Charter)
Area: 25,616 Acres = 40.03 Square Miles [ Size Rank: 116* ]
Coordinates (Geographic Center): N 43° 59′ W 72°27′
Altitude: 840 feet ASL
Population (US Census, 2010): 1,238 [ Population Rank: 124* ]
Population Density (persons per square mile): 30.9 [ Density Rank: 133* ]
Full Census Info: Town County State
*Area, Population and Density rankings refer to Chelsea’s relative position among Vermont’s 255 civic entities (9 cities, 242 towns, 4 gores and grants). Complete rankings are here.
The first-named grantee of the town was one Bela Turner of Lebanon, New Hampshire, among other things a representative to that state’s legislature, and it was after him that this town was originally named Turnersburgh. It is unlikely that he ever intended to settle here, nor did any of the other Doctors, Esquires and Honorables liberally sprinkled among the grantees.
Town Meeting in 1788 found most of the residents wanting to change the name to Brookline. Not having elected a representative yet, they entrusted Seth Austin (neighboring Tunbridge’s represenative) to tell the legislature the name they wanted. Nobody is really sure what hgappened, but by the time the legislative vote was finished, the name had been switched to Chelsea. Supposedly, this was because Checlsea was a section of Norwich, the Connecticut town from which many residents had come. Since there was already a Norwich in Vermont, this was the second choice. Nobody ever admitted to being responsible for the change. Six years later, the name Brookline was used for another Vermont town.
The town is unusual in that it does not seem to have had any other villages than Chelsea itself. Only two neighborhood names, Boquet Corner and Turkey Hollow, have been discovered and nothing is known of their origins. There was a tiny settlement known as Cheslsea West Hill on the west side of the town; its location can still be identified by its cemetery
Activities & Points of Interest
Goings-on in and near Chelsea
Calendar of Events provided by the Vermont Department of Tourism & Marketing.
Covered Bridge (With Google Maps and satellite images):
Moxley
Click Here for a map of all bridges in Orange County.
Contact Info
Emergency Services (Statewide): 911
Hospital: Gifford Medical Center (Randolph) 802-728-7000
Town Clerk: Karen Lathrop PO Box 266 Chelsea, VT 05038
802-685-4460
M 8:30-2:30 and 4:30-6:30, T-F 8:30-2:30
Churches, Ministries, Charitables
United Church of Christ : United Church of Christ
United Methodist : Chelsea West Hill UMC 802-685-4688
United Methodist : United Church Of Chelsea 802-685-4874
Schools
Orange Windsor Supervisory Union 802-763-8840
Chelsea Public School 802-685-4551
Wellspring Waldorf School 802-685-3181
Neighboring Towns
This is a basic geographic reference, intended to show relative location of adjacent towns. Directional accuracy is limited to 16 compass points. There isn’t even the slightest suggestion that one can necessarily travel directly from one town to the next (as in “You can’t get there from here”).
Chelsea
Utilities
Notes about utilities:
- One electric or phone company indicates that company serves the entire town. More than one of either indicates each serves different areas of town.
- A listed cable company MIGHT mean the entire town is covered, but not necessarily. More than one listed indicates each serves different areas of town.
- Unless your area is one served by Vermont’s only gas utility, your only option is bottled gas (any dealer).
Cable Charter Communications 888-438-2427
Electric Green Mountain Power 888-835-4672
Electric Washington Electric Co-op 800-932-5245
Telephone Fairpoint 866-984-2001
