Washington offers rural mountain living in eastern Vermont
Washington is a small Orange County community in eastern Vermont. With a population of about 1,000, the once farming town now serves as a bedroom community for residents who work in nearby cities such as Montpellier, Barre and Burlington. Even though it's becoming popular with commuters, the area itself still feels out of the way. “You have to be prepared for a rural lifestyle,” says Darren Sherburne, who is a Realtor at Four Seasons Sotheby's International Realty with 5 years of experience. “Washington is very remote and rural, and there’s less cell service. It’s not a place for people who are living in the woods for the first time.”
Single-family homes scattered in the hills
Washington's rural landscape is full of densely wooded forests, and houses are spread apart on mountainous hillsides. Built from the 1800s and onward, homes in Washington feature a mix of traditional farmhouses, ranch-styles, Cape Cods, workers cottages and colonial-inspired houses. Single-family homes may sell from $200,000 to about $600,000, and the median sale price is approximately $350,000. Many properties have raised decks or timber frames, and some houses have panoramic mountain views. It’s fairly common to find properties that have as many as 10 acres of land.
Carpenter Park is the town's gathering place
Full of woodsy terrain, Washington has plenty of opportunities for outdoor recreation. The 77-acre Carpenter Park features sports fields for soccer and baseball, a basketball court and a playground. Little League often practices and holds tournaments here, and the park is also the gathering place for many community events and festivals. Carpenter Park is also connected to many trails for cross-country skiing, horseback riding, mountain biking, running and walking. People can also go hunting, hiking and wildlife viewing at Washington Wildlife Management Area and Washington State Forest.
The town offers school choice for secondary education
The community is served by Central Vermont Supervisory Union. Washington Village School serves students from prekindergarten through fourth grade and has a B grade from Niche. Orange Center School teaches grades five through eight and gets a D-plus. For secondary education, students may attend a school of their choice, and area schools include U-32 Middle & High School and Spaulding High School, which get a B and a C-plus, respectively. Northfield Middle/High School and Williamstown Middle/High School both have a C.
Local transit options and snowy weather
The town is accessible via Vermont Route 110, and Interstate 89 is nearby. Montpelier, the state capital, is about 15 miles north, and Central Vermont Medical Center is about 10 miles northwest in Berlin. Patrick Leahy Burlington International Airport is about 50 miles away in Burlington. “People should prepare to have four-wheel drives with high clearance,” Sherburne says. “There’s quite a bit of snow up here, and if you just have a Subaru, you won’t be able to get anywhere in winter. It really doesn’t work that way up here.”
Shopping and dining options in neighboring Barre and Berlin
The town’s convenient shop, Washington Village Store, offers daily essentials and a selection of hot food items, such as pizza, cheeseburgers and chicken tenders. Less than 10 miles south, Crossmolina Farm has fresh produce and hosts pizza nights on Saturdays in the summer. The Pub is a local diner in Williamstown, a neighboring town west of the area. Dollar General and Hannaford are about 5 miles north in Barre, and Walmart is just over 10 miles northwest in Berlin.
Community celebrations in the town of Washington
Washington has several community events throughout the year, including seasonal movie nights, a music in the park series and the option for kids to meet Santa during the winter holidays. Washington Field Day takes place in July and has a chili cook-off, a pie-eating contest, sports games and races.
