Historical U.S. Census totals for Orange County, Vermont

This article shows U.S. Census totals for Orange County, Vermont, broken down by municipality, from 1900 to 2000.

Like most areas of New England, Orange County is (and has been at all times since well before the 20th century) entirely divided into incorporated municipalities. There is no unincorporated territory.

There are three types of incorporated municipalities in Vermont: towns, cities and villages. As in the other New England states, towns are the basic unit of municipal government. Cities are independent of and equivalent to towns, but differ in their form of government. Villages overlay towns and assume responsibility for some municipal services within their boundaries. Incorporated villages are not found in any of the other New England states, and are less common in Vermont today than they have been in the past. A number of villages have disincorporated over the years, choosing to revert back to full town control; most of those that remain are very small.

The main tables below show municipalities at the town level. For any census, adding up the totals for each town-level municipality should yield the county total. The tables in the New England Historical U.S. Census Totals series differentiate between towns and cities; however, there have never been any cities in Orange County. A separate section follows with population totals for villages from 1930 to 2000.

For more information on the New England municipal system, see New England town.

Corporate changes since 1900

There have been no changes in Orange County’s town-level municipality roster since 1900.

1900

County Total: 19,313

*Randolph 3,141
*Newbury 2,125
*Williamstown 1,610
*Bradford 1,338
*Thetford 1,249
*Topsham 1,117
*Chelsea 1,070
*Strafford 1,000
*Brookfield 996
*Corinth 978
*Tunbridge 885
*Washington 820
*Braintree 776
*Vershire 641
*Orange 598
*West Fairlee 531
*Fairlee 438

1910

County Total: 18,703

*Randolph 3,191
*Newbury 2,035
*Williamstown 1,726
*Bradford 1,372
*Thetford 1,182
*Chelsea 1,074
*Brookfield 1,008
*Corinth 1,005
*Topsham 918
*Tunbridge 918
*Strafford 776
*Washington 762
*Braintree 760
*Orange 644
*Vershire 448
*West Fairlee 446
*Fairlee 438

1920

County Total: 17,279

*Randolph 3,010
*Newbury 1,908
*Williamstown 1,526
*Bradford 1,422
*Thetford 1,089
*Chelsea 1,087
*Corinth 936
*Tunbridge 907
*Brookfield 860
*Topsham 825
*Braintree 707
*Washington 660
*Strafford 601
*Orange 485
*Fairlee 459
*Vershire 410
*West Fairlee 387

1930

County Total: 16,694

*Randolph 3,166
*Newbury 1,744
*Williamstown 1,608
*Bradford 1,235
*Thetford 1,052
*Chelsea 1,004
*Tunbridge 903
*Corinth 817
*Brookfield 761
*Topsham 720
*Washington 697
*Braintree 635
*Strafford 615
*Orange 508
*Fairlee 456
*West Fairlee 405
*Vershire 368

1940

County Total: 17,048

*Randolph 3,278
*Newbury 1,723
*Bradford 1,507
*Williamstown 1,477
*Thetford 1,043
*Chelsea 1,013
*Tunbridge 882
*Corinth 822
*Brookfield 808
*Washington 730
*Topsham 707
*Braintree 648
*Strafford 598
*Fairlee 535
*Orange 482
*West Fairlee 428
*Vershire 367

1950

County Total: 17,027

*Randolph 3,499
*Newbury 1,667
*Williamstown 1,600
*Bradford 1,551
*Thetford 1,046
*Chelsea 1,025
*Corinth 786
*Tunbridge 774
*Brookfield 762
*Topsham 733
*Strafford 680
*Washington 650
*Braintree 626
*Fairlee 571
*Orange 410
*West Fairlee 363
*Vershire 284

1960

County Total: 16,014

*Randolph 3,414
*Bradford 1,619
*Williamstown 1,553
*Newbury 1,452
*Thetford 1,049
*Chelsea 957
*Corinth 775
*Tunbridge 743
*Topsham 638
*Brookfield 597
*Strafford 548
*Fairlee 569
*Washington 565
*Braintree 536
*Orange 430
*West Fairlee 333
*Vershire 236

1970

County Total: 17,676

*Randolph 3,882
*Williamstown 1,822
*Bradford 1,627
*Newbury 1,440
*Thetford 1,422
*Chelsea 983
*Tunbridge 791
*Braintree 751
*Topsham 686
*Corinth 683
*Washington 667
*Brookfield 606
*Fairlee 604
*Orange 540
*Strafford 536
*West Fairlee 337
*Vershire 299

1980

County Total: 22,739

*Randolph 4,689
*Williamstown 2,284
*Bradford 2,191
*Thetford 2,188
*Newbury 1,699
*Chelsea 1,091
*Braintree 1,065
*Brookfield 959
*Tunbridge 925
*Corinth 904
*Washington 855
*Topsham 767
*Fairlee 770
*Orange 752
*Strafford 731
*Vershire 442
*West Fairlee 427

1990

County Total: 26,149

*Randolph 4,764
*Williamstown 2,839
*Bradford 2,522
*Thetford 2,438
*Newbury 1,985
*Corinth 1,244
*Braintree 1,174
*Chelsea 1,166
*Tunbridge 1,154
*Brookfield 1,089
*Topsham 944
*Washington 937
*Orange 915
*Strafford 902
*Fairlee 883
*West Fairlee 633
*Vershire 560

2000

County Total: 28,226

*Randolph 4,853
*Williamstown 3,225
*Bradford 2,619
*Thetford 2,617
*Newbury 1,965
*Corinth 1,461
*Tunbridge 1,309
*Chelsea 1,240
*Brookfield 1,222
*Braintree 1,194
*Topsham 1,142
*Washington 1,047
*Strafford 1,045
*Fairlee 967
*Orange 965
*West Fairlee 726
*Vershire 629

Villages

This section lists census totals for incorporated villages for 1930 through 2000.

As of 1930, Orange County contained four incorporated villages:

*The village of Bradford, within the town of the same name
*The village of Newbury (inc. 1905), within the town of the same name
*The village of Randolph, within the town of the same name
*The village of Wells River (inc. 1888), within the town of Newbury

The village of Randolph disincorporated in 1985, and the village of Bradford disincorporated in 2004.

Note: The population of the village of Newbury was not reported separately from the town of Newbury in the 1950 and 1960 Censuses; it is not clear why.

1930

*Randolph 1,957
*Bradford 598
*Wells River 553
*Newbury 399

1940

*Randolph 1,988
*Bradford 693
*Wells River 527
*Newbury 391

1950

*Randolph 2,223
*Bradford 725
*Wells River 570
*Newbury not reported

1960

*Randolph 2,122
*Bradford 760
*Wells River 472
*Newbury not reported

1970

*Randolph 2,115
*Bradford 709
*Wells River 419
*Newbury 344

1980

*Randolph 2,217
*Bradford 831
*Newbury 425
*Wells River 396

1990

*Bradford 672
*Wells River 424
*Newbury 412

2000

*Bradford 815
*Newbury 406
*Wells River 325

Notes

1970 Census

As had been the case with the 1950 and 1960 Censuses, the 1970 Census did not initially report the population for the village of Newbury separately from the town of Newbury. The inclusion of a total for the village of Newbury was a later revision. The village of Jericho, in Chittenden County, and the borough of Woodmont, Connecticut follow similar patterns.

2000 Census

The Census Bureau made a number of revisions to 2000 census totals subsequent to their initial release. The 2000 total for the town of Newbury was originally reported as 1,955; and for the town of Chelsea, 1,250. The totals were later revised to those shown in the list above. As part of the revision, the population of the village of Newbury was also revised; it was originally reported as 396. This was apparently done to correct an assignment error between the two towns, which affected the village on the Newbury side; the collective population of the two towns is the same using either set of figures, so the county total was not affected.

ee also

*United States Census
*Orange County, Vermont