Bloomfield

Pressed against the Connecticut River at Vermont's northeastern corner, Bloomfield is an Essex County town that feels closer to New Hampshire and Quebec than to most of its home state. The town was chartered in 1762 as Minehead, one of the earliest grants in the region, but settlement was slow in coming. The harsh climate and remote location meant the population never grew large.

The Nulhegan River joins the Connecticut near Bloomfield, and the surrounding landscape is some of the wildest in Vermont. The Silvio O. Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge encompasses thousands of acres nearby, protecting boreal forest and wetland habitat that supports moose, black bear, and nesting warblers. Logging has been the primary industry for generations, and the forest products economy still shapes daily life.

Bloomfield has about 228 residents, making it one of the smaller towns in the state. Town meeting is an exercise in face-to-face democracy at its most literal -- with so few voters, every opinion is heard and every vote matters. The selectboard keeps the town running between meetings, managing roads and budgets with the lean efficiency that small Vermont towns have practiced for centuries.