Brandon Map
Brandon is a town in Rutland County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,917 at the 2000 census.
On October 20, 1761 the town of Brandon was chartered to Capt. Josiah Powers. In October 1784, the name of the town of Neshobe, Vermont was changed to Brandon by an act of legislature. (MacNabb Currier, 1914)
Brandon Town Hall and Bridge, c. 1870s Chartered in 1761, Brandon is a study in early American architecture and Vermont history. When the first settlers came to the area in the mid-1770s, they established the village of Neshobe. The area was rich in natural resources with excellent farmland along the rivers and abundant supplies of timber and minerals. The Town grew and flourished during the 1800s with several industries relying on the key resources of waterpower, iron ore and marble. The coming of the railroad in 1849 enabled the manufacture and shipping of iron-based products such as the Howe scale, as well as Brandon paints, wood products and marble. During its century of rapid growth, Brandon Village evolved a unique village plan. The historic Crown Point military road came through Brandon to connect Lake Champlain to the east coast. The Congregational and Baptist churches were built on either side of the Neshobe River, each with its own green laid out at a bend in the road. In the ensuing decades, government, commerce and prominent individuals developed commercial streets at the core which radiated out from the greens lined with residences leading to farms, mines and quarries in the Town. Pearl and Park Streets were laid out to be suitable for militia training, resulting in broad, tree-shaded streets with deep front yards.
Nearby cities include East Middlebury, Benson, Castleton, Rutland, West Rutland.