Athens, Vermont, New England USA
About Athens, Vermont
Windham County
Chartered: May 3, 1780 (Vermont Charter)
Area: 9,019 Acres = 14.09 Square Miles [ Size Rank: 237* ]
Coordinates (Geographic Center): N 43° 08′ W 72°35′
Altitude: 980 feet ASL
Population (US Census, 2010): 442 [ Population Rank: 225* ]
Population Density (persons per square mile): 31.4 [ Density Rank: 168* ]
Full Census Info: Town County State
*Area, Population and Density rankings refer to Athens’ relative position among Vermont’s 255 civic entities (9 cities, 242 towns, 4 gores and grants). Complete rankings are here.
Spelled Athans in its charter, the present spelling seems to have been adopted quite early; the modern local pronunciation incorporates “A”, as in “Nathan”. It is not known who might have suggested the name, or why.
Most of the similarly-named places in the US (Rome, Troy, etc.,) are the result of a post-Revolutionary enthusiasm for classical names. As a medical man, Dr. Solomon Harvey, the first-listed grantee, would have been familiar with the classics, and there may be some vague connection with the 5th Century Greek physician Hippocrates (as in Hippocratic oath) and naming the town for a Greek city (emphasize may).
The only real village has always been known as Athens, and for a time (1827-1907) actually had a Post Office.
An almost entirely uninhabited area in the southern part of the town is known as Hedgehog Gulf. For those not familiar with the term as used in Vermont, the porcupine is often called a hedgehog because it is prickly like a thorny hedge and grunts like a pig when eating or alarmed.
Activities & Points of Interest
Goings-on in and near Athens
Calendar of Events provided by the Vermont Department of Tourism & Marketing.
Historical Society of Windham County
Contact Info
Emergency Services (Statewide): 911
Hospital: Springfield Hospital (Springfield) 802-885-2151
Town Clerk: Darlene Wyman 56 Brookline Road Athens, VT 05143
802-869-3370
T 9-12
Schools
Windham Northeast Supervisory Union 802-463-9958
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”).
Athens
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).
Electric Green Mountain Power 888-835-4672
Telephone Vermont Telephone Company 800-279-4049
