Editing Brighton, Vermont

{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
<!-- Infobox begins. Additional parameter field maybe available at Template:Infobox settlement -->
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name            = Brighton, Vermont
|other_name               =
|native_name              = <!-- for cities whose native name is not in English -->
|nickname                 =
|settlement_type          = Town
|motto                    =
|image_skyline            = Island Pond 6.JPG
|imagesize                = 
|image_caption            = Village of [[Island Pond, Vermont|Island Pond]] in Brighton
|image_flag               =
|flag_size                =
|image_seal               =
|seal_size                =
|image_shield             =
|shield_size              =
|image_blank_emblem       =
|blank_emblem_size        =
|image_map                = Essex County Vermont incorporated and unincorporated areas Brighton highlighted.svg
|mapsize                  = 260px
|map_caption              = Location in [[Essex County, Vermont|Essex County]] and the state of [[Vermont]].
|image_map1               = Map of USA VT.svg
|mapsize1                 = 195px
|map_caption1             = Location of Vermont with the U.S.A.
|subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_name1        = [[Vermont]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Vermont|County]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Essex County, Vermont|Essex]]
|parts_type               = Community
|parts                    = [[Island Pond, Vermont|Island Pond]]
|subdivision_type3        =
|subdivision_name3        =
|subdivision_type4        =
|subdivision_name4        =
|government_footnotes     =
|government_type          = [[New England town]]
|leader_title             =
|leader_name              =
|leader_title1            = <!-- for places with, say, both a mayor and a city manager -->
|leader_name1             =
|leader_title2            =
|leader_name2             =
|leader_title3            =
|leader_name3             =
|leader_title4            =
|leader_name4             =
|established_title        = Chartered
|established_date         = 1781
|established_title2       = Settled
|established_date2        = 1824
|established_title3       = Organized
|established_date3        = 1832
|area_magnitude           =
|unit_pref                = Imperial
|area_footnotes           =
|area_total_km2           = 138.1
|area_land_km2            = 134.3
|area_water_km2           = 3.8
|area_total_sq_mi         = 
|area_land_sq_mi          = 
|area_water_sq_mi         = 
|area_water_percent       =
|population_as_of         = 2020
|population_footnotes     =
|population_note          =
|population_total         = 1157
|population_density_km2   = 8.6
|population_density_sq_mi = 
|population_blank1_title          = Households
|population_blank1                = 529
|population_blank2_title          = Families
|population_blank2                =  356
|timezone                 = [[Eastern Time Zone|EST]]
|utc_offset               = -5
|timezone_DST             = [[Eastern Daylight Time|EDT]]
|utc_offset_DST           = -4
|coordinates              = {{coord|44|48|32|N|71|52|10|W|region:US-VT|display=inline,title}}
|elevation_footnotes      = <!--for references: use <ref> </ref> tags-->
|elevation_m              = 365
|elevation_ft             = 1280
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
|postal_code              = 05846 ([[Island Pond, Vermont|Island Pond]])
|area_code                = [[Area code 802|802]]
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 50-08725<ref name="GR2">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |access-date=January 31, 2008 |title=U.S. Census website }}</ref>
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              = 1462052<ref name="GR3">{{cite web|url=http://geonames.usgs.gov|access-date=January 31, 2008|title=US Board on Geographic Names|publisher=[[United States Geological Survey]]|date=October 25, 2007}}</ref>
|website                  = {{URL|brightonvt.org}}
|footnotes                =
}}
<!-- Infobox ends -->

'''Brighton''' is a [[New England town|town]] in [[Essex County, Vermont|Essex County]], [[Vermont]], United States. The population was 1,157 at the [[2020 United States Census|2020 census]].<ref name="Census 2020">{{cite web| url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/profile?g=0600000US5000908725| title=Census - Geography Profile: Brighton town, Essex County, Vermont| publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]| access-date=December 28, 2021}}</ref> The town was named "Gilead" in its original grant in 1780. The town was sold to a group consisting primarily of soldiers commanded by Colonel Joseph Nightingale and subsequently named "Random". The town's name was finally changed by the legislature to "Brighton" in 1832. The Brighton village of [[Island Pond, Vermont|Island Pond]] gets its name from the [[Abenaki]] word ''Menanbawk'', which literally means island pond.

Brighton is part of the [[Berlin, New Hampshire|Berlin]], [[New Hampshire|NH]]-[[Berlin, New Hampshire micropolitan area|VT Micropolitan Statistical Area]].

==Geography==
Brighton is in western Essex County, bordered to the north by [[Warren's Gore, Vermont|Warren's Gore]] and [[Averys Gore, Vermont|Averys Gore]], to the northeast by [[Lewis, Vermont|Lewis]], to the southeast by [[Ferdinand, Vermont|Ferdinand]], to the southwest by [[Newark, Vermont|Newark]] in [[Caledonia County, Vermont|Caledonia County]] and [[Westmore, Vermont|Westmore]] in [[Orleans County, Vermont|Orleans County]], and to the northwest by [[Charleston, Vermont|Charleston]] and [[Morgan, Vermont|Morgan]] in Orleans County. The unincorporated community of [[Island Pond, Vermont|Island Pond]], the main community in the town, is at the north end of the lake of the same name in the center of the town.

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town of Brighton has a total area of {{convert|138.1|sqkm|order=flip}}, of which {{convert|134.3|sqkm|order=flip}} is land and {{convert|3.8|sqkm|order=flip}}, or 2.76%, is water.<ref name="Census 2010">{{cite web| url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/G001/0600000US5000908725| title=Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Census Summary File 1 (G001): Brighton town, Essex County, Vermont| publisher=U.S. Census Bureau| work=American Factfinder| access-date=March 31, 2016| archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213130131/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/G001/0600000US5000908725| archive-date=February 13, 2020| url-status=dead}}</ref> Island Pond, originally called "Knowlton Pond" in the 19th century to honor [[Luke Knowlton]], who surveyed and laid out the town, is Brighton's largest body of water. The [[Clyde River (Vermont)|Clyde River]] flows out of the north end of Island Pond and proceeds in a northwesterly direction towards [[Charleston, Vermont|Charleston]]. Spectacle Pond is a [[Kettle (landform)|kettle lake]] just east (upstream) of Island Pond. It is only {{convert|8|to|10|ft}} deep, with a thick bottom of muck.<ref name="Johnson, Charles W. 1984">{{cite book | author = Johnson, Charles W. |title = The Nature of Vermont | publisher = [[University Press of New England]] | year = 1984}}</ref> Most of the town, including Island and Spectacle ponds and the Clyde River, is part of the [[Lake Memphremagog]] watershed, and thus part of the [[Saint Lawrence River]] basin, via the [[Magog River|Magog]] and [[Saint-François River|Saint-François]] rivers of [[Quebec]]. The east side of the town drains to the [[Connecticut River]], mostly to the east via the [[Nulhegan River]], but a small portion to the south via the East Branch of the [[Passumpsic River]]. The highest point in Brighton is the {{convert|2789|ft|adj=on}} southern summit of Bluff Mountain, in the northern part of the town.

Vermont Routes [[Vermont Route 114|114]] and [[Vermont Route 105|105]] cross the town, joining as Derby Street through Island Pond. Route 114 leads north {{convert|16|mi}} to the [[Canada–United States border]] at [[Norton, Vermont]], and south {{convert|24|mi}} to [[Lyndonville, Vermont|Lyndonville]]. Route 105 leads east {{convert|16|mi}} to [[Bloomfield, Vermont|Bloomfield]] on the [[Connecticut River]] and northwest {{convert|17|mi}} through [[Charleston, Vermont|Charleston]] to [[Derby Center, Vermont|Derby Center]].

==History==
In 1957, a {{convert|67|ft|adj=on}} white spruce was chosen from the town for display as the [[Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree]].<ref>{{Cite journal |first=Pat |last=Hunt |date=December 2008 |journal=Vermont's Northland Journal |volume=7 |issue=9 |pages=6 }}</ref>

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1810= 144
|1830= 105
|1840= 157
|1850= 193
|1860= 945
|1870= 1535
|1880= 1691
|1890= 2020
|1900= 2023
|1910= 2013
|1920= 2280
|1930= 2002
|1940= 1754
|1950= 1671
|1960= 1545
|1970= 1365
|1980= 1557
|1990= 1562
|2000= 1260
|2010= 1222
|2020= 1157
|align-fn=center
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html |title=U.S. Decennial Census |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=May 16, 2015 }}</ref>
}}

The racial make up is 95.4% White, 1.2% Asian and 3.1% from two or more races.
As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2" /> of 2000, there were 1,260 people, 529 households, and 356 families residing in the town.  The population density was {{convert|24.1|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}.  There were 891 housing units at an average density of {{convert|17.1|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}.

There were 529 households, out of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.8% were couples living together and joined in either [[marriage]] or [[Civil Union|civil union]], 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.7% were non-families. 27.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.  The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.88.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.0% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 23.8% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 18.2% who were 65 years of age or older.  The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.7 males.  For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.3 males.

==Economy==

===Personal income===
The median income for a household in the town was $26,932, and the median income for a family was $31,316. Males had a median income of $26,413 versus $23,125 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $12,999.  About 14.9% of families and 19.2% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 28.7% of those under age 18 and 15.3% of those age 65 or over.

===Industry===

====Tourism====
The Brighton Snowmobile Club maintains {{convert|130|mi}} of trails during the winter.<ref>{{cite book | author = Creaser, Richard |title = Myers handles groomer for I.P. club | publisher = the Chronicle | date = February 11, 2009}}</ref>

==Media==
[[Vermont Public Radio|WVTI 106.9]] broadcasts from Island Pond.<ref>{{cite book | author = VPR |title = VPR Classical broadcasts from I.P. | publisher = the Chronicle | date = October 28, 2008}}</ref>

==References==

<references />

==External links==
* [http://www.brightonvt.org/ Town of Brighton official website]
* [http://www.islandpond.com/ Island Pond commercial website]

{{Essex County, Vermont}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Brighton, Vermont| ]]
[[Category:Towns in Vermont]]
[[Category:Berlin, New Hampshire micropolitan area]]
[[Category:Towns in Essex County, Vermont]]