Waltham

One of the smallest towns in Addison County, Waltham was chartered in 1796 and occupies a narrow strip of flat land between the Dead Creek and Otter Creek wetlands. The terrain is as flat as Vermont gets — this is lake-bottom country, left behind when the Champlain Sea retreated thousands of years ago. The soil proved excellent for farming, and Waltham has been an agricultural community since its founding.

With a population of about 466, Waltham has no village center, no store, and no school — children attend school in neighboring Vergennes. The Dead Creek Wildlife Management Area, which extends into the town, is one of the premier birding locations in Vermont, particularly during the fall snow goose migration. Town meeting in March is where Waltham's residents gather to manage their budget and elect officers — a small-scale exercise in democracy that suits a community this size perfectly.