Editing Randolph, Vermont (section)

==History==

[[File:West Randolph, Vt. (2675175435).jpg|thumb|Print of West Randolph from 1886 by [[L.R. Burleigh]] with listing of landmarks]]

Vermont granted the town on November 2, 1780, when the [[New Hampshire]] settlers could not locate the original grantees, whose patents were issued by [[New York (state)|New York]]. It was chartered on June 29, 1781, to Aaron Storrs and 70 others, and was originally named "Middlesex".<ref name="virvt">[http://www.virtualvermont.com/towns/randolph.html#about Randolph, Vermont, New England, USA]. Virtualvermont.com (May 25, 2013). Retrieved on 2014-04-12.</ref>

The town was first settled {{circa|1778}}, when [[Vermont Republic|Vermont was an unrecognized state]] whose government existed in defiance of the government of New York, which claimed Vermont was a part of New York. To encourage recognition of the state by the United States, the town was renamed in honor of [[Edmund Randolph]], one of the [[Founding Fathers of the United States]].<ref name="virvt"/>

With productive soil for [[Tillage|cultivation]], [[farming]] became an intensive industry. By 1830, when the population reached 2,743, between twelve and thirteen thousand [[sheep]] [[grazing|grazed]] its [[pasture]]s. Randolph was noted for its good [[butter]], [[cheese]] and [[mutton]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://newenglandtowns.org/vermont/randolph|title=RANDOLPH, VERMONT • Historic New England|website=newenglandtowns.org|language=en-us|access-date=March 13, 2018}}</ref>

Two branches of the [[White River (Vermont)|White River]] provided [[water power]] for [[watermill]]s. By 1859, the town had three [[gristmill]]s, one oil mill, and one [[carding]] mill.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_OcoMAAAAYAAJ|page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_OcoMAAAAYAAJ/page/n928 881]|quote=coolidge mansfield history description new england 1859.|title=A History and Description of New England, General and Local|last1=Coolidge|first1=Austin Jacobs|last2=Mansfield|first2=John Brainard|date=1859|publisher=A.J. Coolidge|language=en}}</ref> In 1848, the [[Vermont Central Railroad]] opened service through the town. Randolph's prosperity during the [[Victorian era]] endowed it with some fine [[architecture]], including the [[Second Empire (architecture)|Second Empire]] Randolph Railroad Depot and [[Renaissance Revival]] Kimball Public Library.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://kimballlibrary.org/history/|title=History of Kimball Public Library}}</ref>

In 1921, Randolph was the setting for, and provided some of the cast of, a [[silent movie]] called ''[[The Offenders (1921 film)|The Offenders]].'' In 1922, the same was true for the film ''Insinuation''.

Today, Randolph is a thriving meeting-spot and shopping center for the surrounding area. The town is home to attractions such as the Porter Music Box Museum and the Chandler Music Hall. Also located in Randolph are the Gifford Medical Center, a hospital; Dubois & King, a civil and structural engineering firm; and Randolph Union High School, which also serves students from the neighboring towns of Braintree and Brookfield. Downtown Randolph hosts the [[Randolph station (Vermont)|Amtrak station]], shops, restaurants, Playhouse Movie Theatre, and several gas stations.

<gallery>
Image:Union Block, Randolph, VT.jpg|Union Block in 1912
Image:Kimball Public Library, Randolph, VT.jpg|Kimball Library {{circa|1915}}
Image:Corner Main & Pleasant Sts., Randolph, VT.jpg|North Main Street in 1913 
</gallery>