Waterford, Vermont

Waterford, Vermont
View of Lower Waterford, VT, from the west
Waterford, Vermont
Waterford, Vermont
Location in the United States
Coordinates: 44°22′N 71°57′W / 44.367°N 71.950°W / 44.367; -71.950
Country United States
State Vermont
CountyCaledonia
CharteredNovember 8, 1780,
CommunitiesLower Waterford
West Waterford
Area
 • Total
39.7 sq mi (102.9 km2)
 • Land38.3 sq mi (99.2 km2)
 • Water1.4 sq mi (3.7 km2)
Elevation
1,306 ft (398 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
1,268
 • Density33/sq mi (12.8/km2)
Time zoneUTC−5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP Code
05819
Area code802
FIPS code50-77125
GNIS feature ID1462245
Websitewww.waterfordvt.gov

Waterford is a town in Caledonia County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,268 at the 2020 census. Located on the Connecticut River, the town has historic interest for its vanished village of Upper Waterford, removed during the construction of power dams on the river between 1928 and 1957. The extensive reservoir formed by Moore Dam in 1956 offers a boat launch, sport fishing, and when the water level is lowered, views of where the road to Upper Waterford existed.

Waterford businesses include farming, construction, and quarries, It has its own "grade school" (grades K-8), one active church and one historic church structure, and a prestigious lodging, the Rabbit Hill Inn, located in what is nicknamed the White Village. The White Village is also of historic and architectural interest, with structures dating to the town's settlement years of 1780 through the 1790s. It gained its present form during the 1930s when dairy entrepreneur John W. Davies bought much of the village at that time and removed many barns and homes, saving the ones that interested him and imposing the exterior colors of white with green shutters.