Saint Albans, Vermont, United States

🇺🇸 St. Albans is the only city in and the seat of Franklin County, Vermont, United States. St. Albans City is completely surrounded by St. Albans Town, which is a separate municipality. The city is located in Northwestern Vermont, 29 miles north of Burlington, Vermont's most populous city which is located in Chittenden County.

History One of the New Hampshire grants, St. Albans was chartered by Colonial Governor Benning Wentworth on August 17, 1763, to Stephen Pomeroy and 63 others. Named after St Albans, Hertfordshire, England, it was first settled during the Revolution by Jesse Welden. The war delayed further settlement until 1785, when many others began to arrive. Farmers found the rich, dark loam suitable for cultivation, as well as for the raising of cattle, horses and sheep. Butter and cheese were produced in great quantities. St. Albans also became known as " The Rail City", home to a major depot, operations centre and repair shop of the Vermont and Canada Railroad. When the village was incorporated in 1859, it had an iron foundry, a manufacturer of freight cars, and a large number of mechanic shops.

The northernmost engagement of the Civil War, known as the St. Albans Raid, occurred here on October 19, 1864. In 1902, the City of St. Albans was incorporated, comprising two square miles (518 hectares) within the town of St. Albans. Today it is a tourist destination noted for its Victorian and Craftsman style architecture built during the railroad era, when over 200 trains a day passed through. St. Albans is a research focus for genealogists, as European immigrants heading for the United States would sometimes land in Canada at Halifax, Nova Scotia or Montreal, Quebec, then take a train through the border crossing here. The National Archives (NARA) lists for St. Albans cover the period 1895–1954.

Culture In late April St. Albans hosts the annual Vermont Maple Festival. The festival includes various food-related contests, as well as the Sap Run, a footrace from Swanton, 8.2 mi (13.2 km) to the north. It was home to the Vermont Voltage, a semi-professional men's soccer team, which folded in 2014.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.0 square miles (5.3 km²), all land. The city is surrounded by the town of St. Albans, with its lush farmland across gently rolling hills. The city is drained by Stevens Brook.

St. Albans is crossed by Interstate 89, U.S. Route 7, as well as Vermont Route 36, 38, 104 and 105. It is about 15 miles (24 km) from Vermont's border with Quebec.

Economy In the 2010 census, the median household income was $37,221, and the median family income was $44,286. Males had a median income of $31,340 versus $23,262 for females. The city's per capita income was $17,853. About 8.5% of families and 9.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.2% of those under age 18 and 11.9% of those age 65 or over.

Economy: Industry The town's comprehensive annual financial report for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2020, lists the principal employers in the town as U.S. Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) (650 employees), Northwestern Medical Center (612 employees), Maple Run Unified School District (608 employees), Mylan Technologies Inc. (425 employees), Dairy Farmers of America (95 employees), Sticks & Stuff (92 employees), the City of St. Albans (91 employees), A.N. Deringer, Inc. (80 employees), Peoples Trust Company (47 employees), and SB Collins (40 employees).

The USCIS has a service centre in St. Albans; the majority of the 1,100 USCIS employees in Vermont are based in St. Albans, and the federal agency is the city's largest employer. The Dairy Farmers of America, a major dairy cooperative, has a manufacturing plant in St. Albans that produces cream, condensed skim milk, and milk powder. The chocolate and cocoa supplier Barry Callebaut has a facility in the city.

Health care The Northwestern Medical Center is a hospital serving the city and the Franklin County area.

Transport: Rail Saint Albans is the northern terminus of the Vermonter, a coach/business class train operated by Amtrak, the national passenger rail system. The train operates daily between Saint Albans and Washington, D.C.

The train formerly continued from Saint Albans to Montreal and was named the Montrealer, but that connection was discontinued in 1995.

Education St. Albans is home to St. Albans City School, an elementary school for students in kindergarten through eighth grade, and Bellows Free Academy, St. Albans, a public high school serving students from many towns in the southern half of Franklin Country.