Chap. 1. 



DESCRIPTIVE GEOGRAPHY. 



FACE OF THE COUNTRY. 



■lUNCIPAL SUMMITS. 



5- DIAGRAM 



|t| Of the relative altitudes of some of the principal Heights in Vermont ahove the sea. 



4279.The Chiii> or Noitli Peak of Mansfield Mouiitaina, 



41g:^Cainel'.-? Hump, 



408G!siitowsbury Mountain 



3983 

 3924 



3700 



3320 



The Nose, or South Peak of Mansfield Mountains, j- 



Killington Peak, ~ 



Equinox Mounlaiii; Manehesier, 



Ascutney Mountain, 



2063jMi<UlIebury turnpike 



1942 Peru turnpike, 

 1882 Keyes turnpike, 



Summit level at Roxbnry,. . .. 

 Summit level at VVilliaiustowii, 



Manchester villiage, 



48.5'Montpelier viHia<;e, . . . . 

 430!Norwich University, . . , . 

 3701 University of Vermont. . . 

 gOJSurface of Lake Champlain, 



Section II. 



Face of the country. 



Mountains. — The surface of Vermont is 

 generally uneven. A few townships along 

 the margin of lake Champlain may be 

 called level ; but with these exceptions, 

 the whole state consists of hills and val- 

 leys, alluvial flats and gentle acclivities, 

 elevated plains and lofty mountains. The 

 celebrated range of Green Mountains, 

 which give name to the state, extends 

 quite through it from south to north, keep- 

 ino- nearly a middle course between Con- 

 necticut river on the east and lake Cham- 

 plain on the west. From the line of Mas- 

 sachusetts to the southern part of Wash- 

 ington county, this range continues lofty, 

 and unbroken through by any considera- 

 ble streams ; dividing the counties of 

 Windham, V/indsor and Orange from the 

 counties of Bennington, Rutland and Ad- 

 dison. In this part of the state, the com- 

 munication between the eastern and west- 

 ern sides of the mountain was formerly 

 difficult, and the phrase, going over the 

 mountain, denoted an arduous business. 

 But on account of the great improvement 



of population, whereas, if the true area had been 

 used in the computation, she would havo rank- 

 ed as the eighth. 



of the roads, more particularly in their 

 more judicious location near the streams, 

 the difficult}' of crossing the mountain has 

 nearly vanished. In the southern part of 

 Washington county, theGreen Mountains 

 separate into two ranges. The highest of 

 the.se ranges, bearing a little east of north, 

 continues along the eastern boundaries of 

 the counties of Chittenden and Franklin, 

 and through the county of Lamoille to 

 Canada line ; while the other range strikes 

 off much more to the east through the 

 southern and eastern parts of Washing- 

 ton county, the western part of Caledonia 

 county and the north western part of Es- 

 sex county to Canada. This last is called 

 the height of lu7uls, and it divides the 

 waters, which fall into Connecticut river, 

 in the north part of the state, from those 

 which flill into lake Champlain and lake 

 Memphremagog. This branch oftheGreea 

 Mountains, though it no where rises so 

 high as many points of the western iiranch, 

 is nmch more uniformly elevated ; yet 

 tlie acclivity is so gentle as to admit of 

 easy roads over it in various j)laces. 

 The western range, having been broken 

 through by the rivers Winooski, Lamoille 

 and Missisco, is divided into several sec- 

 tions, these rivers having opened passa- 

 ges for good roads along their banks, while 



