VT 251: Benson, West Haven, Fair Haven, Castleton, & Lake Bomoseen
- donnaramadishes
- Aug 14, 2023
- 3 min read
Updated: Feb 18
Western Rutland County (bordering New York) is the subject of this VT 251 foray. Come along for a visit to BENSON, WEST HAVEN, FAIR HAVEN, CASTLETON, & Lake Bomoseen, as well as to a deserted sawmill and railroad town.
BENSON
Benson, VT is a town which was previously only known to me as the home of a seemingly random taco truck in a field which I passed numerous times traveling on route 22. I was able to stop when it was open on this 251 foray day, and I can now warn others wondering if it's worth a stop, that it is not, as the food was meh at best. The town of Benson is small (pop. 974 in 2020), rural, and other than a town hall/ museum (of what we couldn't tell) and a library, we didn't see much other than homes. However, Cobble Knoll Orchard is located in Benson and is a boutique apple orchard, so I will definitely be heading there next fall to try some of their boutique varieties! Benson Landing, on Lake Champlain, apparently used to have some sort of Champ-like structure in the water, but there was none still visible in 2023. (Champ is the mythical Lake Champlain monster.) That said, if you like to fish, apparently it's a pretty good spot!
WEST HAVEN
West Haven is one of the smallest towns visited (pop was 239 in 2020). While it has always been rural/ agricultural, in its heyday it was an agricultural center and transportation hub due to its proximity to Lake Champlain and the Poultney River (before the railroad was built in nearby Fair Haven, which West Haven was originally part of). In fact, the town was large enough to support 7 (small, I assume) schools, all with one rotating teacher! Now, though, all the school children go to Fair Haven for their education.
FAIR HAVEN
Fair Haven, VT is a town of roughly 2,700 (in 2023) which is known as the slate center of the nation. While there is certainly evidence of slate, there is also an abundance of marble used in town -- as seen in 2 mansions bordering the large town green. (It is located less than a half-hour away from Proctor, the self-appointed marble capital of the US). Fair Haven is located on the New York border and the Fair Haven (train) Depot was constructed around 1890 which served the nearby slate quarries and passenger traffic. It was also an Amtrak stop (not a station) until 2010, when Amtrak service shifted to nearby Castleton. Fair Haven is a fine town to visit, but it is really a town for Vermonters to live and enjoy.
CASTLETON
Castleton, VT is a lovely town of roughly 4,000 that is home to Castleton College, which was founded in 1787, and is now part of the Vermont State University system. Is has a cute general store, pizza place, diner (with shockingly good homemade onion rings), and a number of historic graceful mansions and churches lining Main Street. One of the buildings at Castleton College housed Vermont's first medical school, which is now set up as an historical site. Just down the road (old route 4 (4A)), you can find two towns which show up on the map even if they aren't on the official 251 list of towns: Hydeville (has its own post office, as well as an old school building and a church which has been converted to a residence) and Blissville (with a hidden old cemetery filled with many gravestones of the Bliss family, after whom I assume this small area was named).
Lake Bomoseen, a large recreational lake in Castleton, has a state park for visitor access and a slate history trail. The trail itself isn't much to speak of, but it is well-marked and has ruins from an old saw mill, made of slate (of course), which was spooky and impressive. Adjacent to the state park, you can see where the West Castleton Railroad & Slate Company set up a town for all its workers supporting the then-thriving slate industry in the mid-1800s, called West Castleton. The town no longer exists except for the sign and three of the buildings which housed employees that are now privately owned.
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