Rochester

Framed by the Green Mountains on all sides, Rochester sits in a broad valley along the White River in Windsor County. The town was chartered in 1781 and developed around its village green — a long, narrow common that remains the center of community life. The Rochester Café, the Federated Church, and the town hall all face the green.

With about 1,100 residents, Rochester is the kind of town that people pass through on Route 100 and remember for its postcard-perfect village. But the community has grit. Tropical Storm Irene in 2011 devastated the town, washing out roads and flooding homes. The recovery effort, led largely by volunteers, demonstrated the resilience that defines these mountain communities.

Rochester's economy blends farming, tourism, and the service trades. The town sits between Killington and the Mad River Valley, drawing visitors year-round. But the annual town meeting — not the tourist economy — is where Rochester's identity as a self-governing community is most clearly expressed.