Updated Feb. 23, 2022
Hardwick, a town in Caledonia County, Vt., contains the unincorporated villages of Hardwick, East Hardwick, and Mackville, and has a population of about 3200 people. The town serves as a bedroom community for employers as far away as Chittenden County and as a commercial center for the region.
Geography
The westernmost town in Caledonia County, Hardwick borders the Caledonia County towns of Walden and Stannard to the east, the Orleans County towns of Greensboro and Craftsbury to the north, the Lamoille County town of Wolcott to the west, and the Washington County town of Woodbury to the south. Hardwick has a total area of 39 square miles.
Rain on Hardwick drains into the Lamoille River and its tributaries flowing west to Lake Champlain. The highest point in Hardwick, the summit of Jeudevine Mountain in the northern corner of the town, is 1,831 feet above sea level.
Vermont Routes 14, 15, and 16 pass through the town.
Economy
Hardwick doesn’t have an affluent population. In 2010, the median income for a household was $33,636, and the median income for a family was $39,278. Males had a median income of $27,188 versus $21,732 for females. About 10.5% of families and 14.0% of the population were below the poverty level, including 16% of those under age 18 and 14% of those over age 65. The price of real estate reflects the affluence of the town.
Demographics
In 2010 there were 1,216 households of which 52% were married living together; 38% of the households contained children under the age of 18. The average household size was 2.6 and the average family size was 3. About 30% of the people were under the age of 18, and 12% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years.
Agriculture
In the past 20 years, Hardwick has focused on using sustainable agriculture and food processing as its local economic base. The Vermont Food Venture Center, provides a “shared-use kitchen incubator for value-added and specialty food producers.” In 2020, a project to restore and expand a 1930s Dutch Colonial style barn, painted yellow, along Vermont Route 15, – the Yellow Barn Project – promises to provide space for post-incubator businesses to continue their operations and market their products.
Government
A 5-person Selectboard, assisted by a wide variety of volunteer Committees and Commissions, governs the town through a Town Manager. The town owns the Hardwick Electric Department and 225 feet of shoreline on Caspian Lake in Greensboro where the 2.4 acres of beach and picnic grounds has been used for recreation since 1927.
Media
The Hardwick Gazette is a weekly newspaper, founded in 1889, that serves Hardwick and surrounding communities. In 2020, it became a digital publication, available at https://hardwickgazette.com