Vermont History (1534) from The Original 13-A Documentary History of Religion in America's First Thirteen States (Amerisearch, Inc., 2009):
<Vermont, pronounced in French "verts monts," means Green Mountain. It was originally part of New France, an area explored by Jacque Cartier in 1534. It was part of New Hampshire at the time of America's Revolutionary War.
Samuel de Champlain was sent there in 1603 by French King Henry IV to begin a settlement. Because growth was slow, Cardinal Richelieu, Prime Minister for King Louis XIII, founded the Company of One Hundred Associates on April 29, 1627, to bring more colonists, increase fur trade and require all settlers to be Catholic.
The first settlement in area of Vermont was Fort Sainte Anne, erected in 1666 on Isle La Motte to fortify Lake Champlain. This was the site of the first Roman Catholic Mass in the State.
In 1690, Dutch Reformed settlers arrived. During the French and Indian War, in 1759, British commander Jeffrey Amherst captured French Fort St. Frédéric and Ethan Allen's Green Mountain Boys captured the French Fort Carillon, renaming it Fort Ticonderoga.
Many French survivors were killed a year later by the Mohawks. The colonies of Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New York all claimed the area of Vermont. Massachusetts relinquished its claims and New Hampshire issued land grants to proprietors, who subdivided it into lots. Some of these lots were set aside for the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, a missionary organization of the Church of England, some for the Church of England itself, and some for the first clergyman who would settle in each township.
When the Revolutionary War began, Vermont fought both Britain and New York, resulting in it being its own nation for 14 years, similar to Texas and Hawaii. In 1791, Vermont applied to be the 14th State of the Union, being accepted by President George Washington.
Predominant denominations were Congregationalists, Episcopalians and Baptists, followed by Methodists, Presbyterians, Free Will Baptists and Quakers. In the early 1800's there were some Unitarians, Universalists, and unconventional sects, such as Millerites and Perfectionists.
Beginning in 1820 with the Second Great Awakening, revivalism swept Vermont and academies with religious affiliations were founded. Anti-slavery sentiment grew strong. In the 1840's the Catholic Church increased with French Canadians and Irish immigrants.
In the late 1800's, Judaism, Welsh Presbyterianism, Swedish Lutheranism and Greek Orthodoxy made a presence.> 1534VH001
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American Quotations by William J. Federer, 2024, All Rights Reserved, Permission granted to use with acknowledgement.
Endnotes:
1534VH001. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Vermont History, beginning 1534. William J. Federer, The Original 13-A Documentary History of Religion in America's First Thirteen States (St. Louis, MO: Amerisearch, Inc.).