RUTLAND (CITY), VERMONT

'Rutland' is a city in Rutland County, Vermont, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 17,292. Rutland is located approximately 70 miles north of Massachusetts and 30 miles east of New York state. Rutland is the second largest city in Vermont. It is completely surrounded by the town of Rutland, Vermont, which is a separate municipality.

Contents

Historic Sites

Geography

Demographics

History

Notable inhabitants

Attractions

Media

Hospital

Sister cities

See also

External links

Historic Sites

Rutland has the following entries on the National Register of Historic Places:

★ Arthur Perkins House — 242 S. Main St. (added October 27, 1988)

★ Chaffee-Moloney Houses — 194 & 196-98 Columbian Ave. (added December 19, 2001)

★ Clementwood — Clement Rd. (added October 27, 1980)

★ H. H. Baxter Memorial Library — 96 Grove St. (added September 24, 1978)

★ Longfellow School — 6 Church St. (added 1976)

★ Proctor-Clement House — Field Ave. (added July 17, 1982)

★ Rutland Courthouse Historic District — U.S. 7 (added October 8, 1976)

★ Rutland Downtown Historic District — Roughly bounded by Strong Ave., State, Wales, Washington, Pine and Cottage Sts. (added September 22, 1980)

★ St. Peter's Church and Mount St. Joseph Convent Complex — Convent Ave., Meadow and River Sts. (added November 3, 1980)

Geography

Rutland is located at , elevation 164.6 m (540 ft.) ¹. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 19.87 km² (7.67 mi²). 19.8 km² (7.6 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (0.52%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 17,292 people, 7,452 households, and 4209 families residing in the city. The population density was 870.3/km² (2254.5/mi²). There were 7,452 housing units at an average density of 289.0/km² (94.49/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.6% White, 0.7% African American, 0.7% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.3% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. 0.9% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 7,452 households out of which 21.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.8% were married couples living together, 12.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.5% were non-families. 36.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.80.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.7% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 22.4% from 45 to 64, and 18.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39.3 years. For every 100 females there were 89.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $30,478, and the median income for a family was $41,561. Males had a median income of $29,457 versus $23,688
for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,075. 15.4% of the population and 10.3% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 30.1% are under the age of 18 and 10.5% are 65 or older.

History

The city began as a small hamlet called Mill Village on Otter Creek in the town of Rutland in the early part of the Nineteenth century. In the early 1800s, small high-quality marble deposits were discovered in Rutland, and in the 1830s a large deposit of nearly solid marble of high quality was found in what is now West Rutland. By the 1840s small firms had begun operations, but marble quarries only became profitable when the railroad came to Rutland in 1851. The famous quarries of Carrara in Tuscany, Italy became largely unworkable because of their extreme depth at the same time; Rutland quickly became one of the leading producers of marble in the world
This fueled enough growth and investment that in 1886 the marble companies saw to it that the center of town was incorporated as Rutland village, and most of the town was split off as West Rutland and Proctor, which contained the bulk of the marble quarries. Rutland City was incorporated as Vermont's third city on November 18, 1892. Since that time, Rutland has grown into the major urban center of southern Vermont. Shopping, dining, entertainment, and work can be found in Rutland, and its industries support many southern Vermonters. Although the closing of the marble quarries in the area in the 1980s and 1990s cost the area many jobs, Rutland has remained a vibrant small city. Major employers of the area are General Electric, OMYA, and Experian.
Recently, a one acre area of land downtown known as "the pit", is slated for development. The site was known as a large hotel that burned down in 1973. The new office building will be more modern than the surrounding buildings, and hold offices, education and civic space, and hopefully fuel the downtown economy.

Notable inhabitants

★ John Deere, inventor of steel bladed plow

★ James E. Burke, former CEO Johnson & Johnson

★ Suzy Chaffee, Olympic skier and actress

★ Joy Hakim, history writer

★ Jim Jeffords, former U.S. senator from Vermont

★ Aaron Lewis, lead singer of the band Staind

★ Andrea Mead-Lawrence, first American to win two gold Olympic skiing medals

★ Arlie Pond Former Major League Pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles

★ Robert Stafford, politician who served as the Governor, U.S. Congressman, and U.S. Senator from Vermont

★ Cherilee Taylor, TV and movie actress

★ John Martin Thomas, twelfth President of Rutgers University

★ Dan Tyminski, bluegrass composer, vocalist, and instrumentalist

★ Steve Wisniewski, offensive guard in the NFL

★ Mia Farrow, Actress, Once married to Woddy Allen

Attractions

U.S. Routes 4 and 7, important highways of the state, merge in Rutland, but not all that the city has to offer is seen on these primary routes. Rutland has the Vermont State Fairgrounds, and the downtown contains the Rutland Free Library, the Paramount Theater and Merchant's Row, a restored street of architecturally significant buildings dating back to the mid 1800s. One hundred and eight buildings in downtown Rutland are listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Also within Rutland City limits is the 275 acre Pine Hill Park offering mountain biking, hiking, and other outdoor recreation. At the park's entrance is the FlipSide Skate Park, municipally operated in an open-sided closed roof arena at the Giorgetti Athletic Complex.
Rutland is near the ski resorts of Killington, Pico and Okemo.
Rutland has hosted the annual Rutland Halloween Parade since 1960. Tom Fagan, a local writer and comic book fan, is credited with having a hand in the parade's early development and superhero theme. In the early 1970s, the Rutland Halloween Parade achieved a degree of fame when it was used as the setting of a number of superhero comic books, including Batman #237, Justice League of America #103, Freedom Fighters #6, Amazing Adventures #16, Avengers #83, and The Mighty Thor #207. Though Fagan is no longer involved in the parade, the popular event continues to this day, celebrating its 47th anniversary in 2006.

Media

Rutland's news comes from the Rutland Herald. There are five radio stations from the city: 98.1 WJJR, 105.3 WEBK, 101.5 The FOX, and 1380AM WSYB.

Hospital

Rutland Regional Medical Center is Vermont's second-largest health care facility, with 188 inpatient beds and 120 physicians.

Sister cities

Rutland has one sister city:

★ Ishidoriya, Iwate, Japan
Rutland hosts an exchange every year called the Rutland Ishidoriya Student Exchange (R.I.S.E) Each year Rutland sends 4-5 8th or 9th grade students to Ishidoriya Japan. R.I.S.E. Has been going on since 1986 and is still active today. Interviews are held to find the Ambassadors each year and money is raised through fundraising for 6 months. Also each year 5 students from Ishidoriya come to Rutland about a month after the Rutland Ambassadors return. Which completes the exchange.

See also

★ Rutland (town), Vermont

★ Rutland Railroad

★ Rutland (Amtrak station)

External links

★ Rutland Vermont Official City Site

★ Downtown Rutland information and links

★ History of Rutland

★ OMYA North America plant

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