Early Newport as a settlement was founded in 1793, after the American Revolutionary War. The village was first called Pickeral Point, but later renamed as Lake Bridge for its location at the head of Lake Memphremagog. In 1816, part of the former town of Salem was annexed to the Town of Newport; it was absorbed into what was then a village. The railroad was constructed to Newport in 1863. In 1868, the Lake Bridge settlement was incorporated as the Village of Newport. It became a busy
lumber town. The
lumbering firm of Prouty & Miller was started in 1865. In 1932, during the
Great Depression, the city operated a
poor farm for the indigent, who worked for their board.
Transportation The
Lady of the Lake steam excursion/ferry boat started operating in 1867. It stopped operations in 1917. This steamboat is used as Newport's logo. In 1868, a
livery stable started operating behind a hotel, several blocks from the railway station, which opened in 1863. At its peak, its owner kept 100 horses there. By the late 19th century, the
Boston & Maine and
Central Vermont railroads were routed through Lake Bridge. The small village expanded because of increased connections to outside markets and ease of transportation; it attracted more residents. By the late 20th century, railroad passenger traffic had declined because people relied on individual vehicles; the last passenger train left Newport in 1965. In 1917, the city paved Main Street. By the summer of 1930, traffic on the street had increased to 4,000 motor vehicles a day.
Military Rogers' Rangers, a Vermont militia, were forced to retreat through the county following their attack on
Saint-Francis, Quebec in 1759, during the French and Indian War. To confound their pursuers, they split up on the east shore of Lake Memphremagog. One group followed the
Clyde River east. Another followed the
Barton River south. In the early 19th century, the women of pioneer Calvin Arnold's household refused to continue to live there. It was located near what is now Clyde Pond, and subject to raids by
Indians. During the American Civil War, the city had a scare when they received news of the
St. Albans Raid. They thought these raids might repeat throughout the state, particularly at the south end of the lake. The militia was turned out. The ferry from Magog was met with determined-looking armed men, much to the captain's surprise, who had heard nothing about the raid. Armed
Norwich University students were shipped in by train. Nothing happened and everyone was sent home after a few days. In August 1942, a single-engine
Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) training plane crashed into the lake near the west shore and the city, killing the pilot, the only occupant.
Architecture In 1873, the Bellevue Hotel was built to accommodate 75; later it expanded to hold 100 guests. It was renamed as the Newport House by 1891. It was demolished in 1973. The Memphremagog Hotel burned in 1907. The current county courthouse was built in 1886. That was the year that the legislature moved the shire town here. In 1879, the Field Opera House and Clock Tower was constructed. In 1896, it was destroyed by fire. The municipal building was later constructed at this site. Lane's Opera House was constructed in 1892. It burned in 1923. The
Goodrich Memorial Library was built in 1899. The parochial Sacred Heart School was opened in 1904 as part of the Burlington Roman Catholic Diocese School District. It closed in the fall of 2007 because of falling enrollment. In 1917, the city of Newport was formed from portions of the towns of
Newport (former village of Newport) and
Derby (former village of West Derby). It was organized on March 5, 1918. The four elementary schools were named after the section of the city they were in: East, West, and South schools. Newport High was across from the West School. There were 60 businesses downtown; east, west and south had an additional 40 businesses. The current federal courthouse was built in 1904. At the time, it included the United States post office, which has since relocated to a more modern facility.
Business The
lumbering firm Prouty & Miller, started in 1865. It operated for more than 100 years, closing in the 1980s. It could hold 2,000 dancers. Notable national performers entertained here while en route between the larger cities of
Boston and
Montreal, traveling on the
Boston & Maine trains. They included:
Louis Armstrong,
Charlie Barnet,
Les Brown,
Cab Calloway,
Rosemary Clooney, the Dorsey Brothers,
Jimmy and
Tommy;
Stan Kenton,
Kay Kyser,
Gene Krupa,
Glenn Miller,
Tony Pastor, and
Louis Prima. In 2003, the Newport-headquartered Citizens Utility was sold. Its assets and operations were divided between Great Bay Hydro and
Vermont Electric Cooperative. A
Columbia Forest Products plant employed about 100 workers. It closed in 2011. ==Geography==