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Woodstock, Vermont, the shire town (county seat) of Windsor County was incorporated July 10, 1761. Legend has it that in 1768 Timothy Knox, a love-lorn lad seeking solitude struck out for life and put up the first dwelling in Woodstock.
Woodstock, Vermont is famous for the architecture of many of its houses, churches and businesses. It is the only town in America with four Paul Revere church bells. Woodstock is the birthplace of Hiram Powers, sculptor of the "Greek Slave" and home of railroad empire-builder, Frederick Billings. Woodstock was also the site of the first ski-tow in the United States which was invented and built in 1934.
In 1969 the Middle Covered Bridge was built over the Ottauquechee River ("Winding Waters") which flows through the center of the Village. The bridge faces the beautiful Village Green, where locals and visitors alike enjoy a casual stroll or a break from a busy day. On Wednesdays afternoons in the summer, this picturesque spot is the venue for the Market on the Green (an outdoor marketplace of organic food and local crafts). Thursdays transforms the Green into a stage for performers at the free Summer Brownbag Concerts which are sponsored by the Pentangle Council on the Arts.
Woodstock, Vermont was the winner of the 1997 National Contest conducted by the Ladies Home Journal magazine as the "Prettiest Town in America", it was chosen as the community with the most beauty, charm and character. A panel of judges named it the clear winner for its natural physical beauty, architectural splendor and civic-minded residents. Visitors today are welcomed to the village by beautiful annual flowers outside every business and twinkling white lights adorning the trees that line the main street in the winter.
In addition to the Village, the Town has four hamlets - South Woodstock, West Woodstock, Taftsville and Prosper - each with its own institutions and character. The balance of the town is essentially rural; its southwest corner is largely undeveloped.
Woodstock is located in central Vermont, 140 miles north of Boston and 190 miles south of Montreal, Canada. It is close to the ski areas of Killington, Suicide Six, Mt. Ascutney and Okemo. Home of the Woodstock Inn and eight miles to the Quechee Lakes Resort. It has been a popular year round resort since the early to mid 1800's when railway passage from White River Junction allowed visitors a relaxing, yet cultural
and recreational experience which holds true to this day. Tourists flock to Woodstock to enjoy the beautiful autumn foliage and share in such events as the annual winter celebration of Wassail Weekend.
Woodstock has been home to various notable individuals over the years from its initial organization to the present such as:
- Fred C. Ainsworth, United States Army Adjutant General
- Ivan Albright, artist
- Frederick H. Billings, founder of the Northern Pacific Railroad
- Jacob Collamer, politician
- George Perkins Marsh, one of America's earliest environmentalists
- Joseph A. Mower, Union general during the American Civil War
- Hiram Powers, neoclassical sculptor
- Laurance Rockefeller, financier and owner of the Woodstock Inn
- Hezekiah Williams, was a United States Representative from Maine
- Daphne Zuniga, film and television actress
- Gwen Verdon, Broadway dancer and actress
- Robert Hager, international television journalist
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