Talk:Montpelier, Vermont

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Untitled

Montpelier does not qualify as a metropolitan area according to the US Census. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.30.55.40 (talk) 05:35, 23 September 2003 (UTC)[reply]

McDonalds

An irrelevant fact: Apparently Vermont is the only state capital in the U.S.A not to have a McDonalds. - Canderra 23:54, 18 October 2005 (UTC)[reply]

I don't think this is irrelevant. It is true for a fact, there is no McDonalds in the Montpelier city limits, and it makes this State Capital rather unique. nfretwurst 16:09, 25 October 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry, I meant the fact is irrelevant in a humorous sort of way, I discovered read the fact in a book somewhere (think it was Micheal Moore's "Idiot Nation" if someone wishes to collaborate factuality) but am not sure if it deserves a mention in the article or not. - Canderra 13:32, 26 October 2005 (UTC)[reply]

-It's relevent, some quick research shows that Montpelier strives for less corporate and more local businesses. The entirety of Vermont doesn't allow billboards, either. I'm curious what other businesses are affected by this, but I don't have time to look into it. 66.119.27.235 21:28, 1 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Please get off the "Montpelier does not have a..." kick. Not having something is not what Wikipedia is all about. It doesn't have a subway system either, or an international airport, or is served by Amtrak. Or dogsled. Or whatever. The article is about what Montpelier has not doesn't have. If you are "proud" of something and want to throw it in somebody's face, please schedule your own soapbox or web page. This isn't it! Student7 19:45, 17 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

*sigh* good lord, yes, we are served by Amtrak. For now, at least. Raj Fra 07:46, 23 December 2008 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Raj Fra (talk • contribs)

It isn't soapboxing - The important thing is that local residents protested against it and got it blocked - not so much that there isnt a McD's. To use your example if residents had protested and blocked a subway it would be relevant too. I reinstated the text Mickmaguire 04:17, 18 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

The article is NOT about social activism. You know how some people try to turn every conversation into one about themselves. That's the situation here. The article is about what Montpelier, a tiny town, has compared to other locations. It isn't about social activism per se. There may some article or articles about that. Anytime you think you can hit somebody in the eye with a "so there, bad guys," please omit it. It doesn not belong in the article! Trust me. I've just been throw a three month argument with someone that went to meditation on this sort of thing. It was a pain. Slapping somebody in the face is more easily done on the street or though your own tabloid media. Forget Wikipedia as an outlet to put someone or something down, to feel morally superior to someone or to express spiritual pride.Student7 01:45, 19 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Hi. The fact that Montpelier officially doesn't have McDonalds means nothing. Drive 7 miles down the road and you can find one in Barre. Or a Burger King. The nearest Walmart is even closer. I'm sure local residents do this. It's a dubious distinction that would fit nicely into a trivia section, which is highly discouraged as per WP:TRIVIA.

I thought the allure of a place like rural Vermont was its contentness with being quiet and nonnotable.--Loodog 04:12, 19 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

THAT'S the point. That it IS in Barre (Berlin actually), and not in Montpelier. And MCD did attempt to place one in Montpelier, only to be defeated by the residents of the town. Student7, you're examples are utter crap. There. I said it. Neither subway systems or international airports are as omnipresent as McDonalds' are. Almost every community - and every other state capitol - has a McDonalds within it's city limits. But not Montpelier. This is what distinguishes it from the other forty-nine. And unlike the user above me, I have the balls to sign my message. Raj Fra 07:42, 23 December 2008 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Raj Fra (talk • contribs)

Unlike Washington DC, the town is self-governed. So being a "capital" doesn't really have anything to do with having a McDonalds or not. Doesn't have a Macys either, or a Target, or dogsled races or .... Like Burlington having to go to Williston when they want anything, Montpelier has to go to Berlin. But that is not what the article is about. The article is about what Montpelier has that would possibly be of encyclopedic interest to anyone. Student7 (talk) 14:08, 27 December 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I still disagree. The place is largely defined by the people, so therefore an article about the place it tells you something real about the people of the town, something about Montpelier. It also helps illustrate why the town is the way it is in a slightly more intagible way. However, I won't reinstate the text as you seem so strongly opposed to it, and actually I don't care much about this article. Others can decide. Mickmaguire 18:03, 19 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

James Madison's Montpelier

Did the naming of Montpelier have anything to do with James Madison's estate? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 165.82.28.102 (talk) 03:32, 30 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I do not believe there is a link. But some free associated possibilities:

James Madison refers to his home as Montpelier in a 1799 document, before the Montpelier, Vermont used the name. What were his sources? Jefferson, an ardent Francophile, had aided Madison in the design and expansion of his home Montpelier. The house was originally called Mount Pleasant. With the revolution and France's financial and military support, things French became very fashionable. General Knox, first US Secretary of War also named his home Montpelier. That house was designed by Charles Bulfinch and is located in Thomaston, Maine. In Vermont's capital city, the source of the name is unclear. Montpelier had once been called Davisville after Jacob Davis, an early settler. Esther Monroe Swift in her book Vermont Placenames Footprints in History suggests the name Montpelier was chosen for its resonance with Vermont.Nearby Calais also sports a French city name, as do Orleans and Vergennes, Vermont. French infatuation seemed to reach its zenith in James Monroe's administration. - CApitol3 (talk) 23:12, 20 December 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Realize also that Vermont's northern border is with French-speaking Quebec, and until the French and Indian War (which ended only a decade before the American War for Independence, i.e. 1754-1763) it was considered French territory. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 147.26.60.159 (talk) 21:00, 8 December 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Etymology and name

If the city is named after Montpellier, why does it only have one L, and why is it pronounced differently?

-JM — Preceding unsigned comment added by 154.20.13.41 (talk) 00:24, 30 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Have you ever read the Constitution? They spelled "choose" c-h-u-s-e, for instance. Spelling was generally more flexible then, and certainly, the spelling of a foreign word might lend itself to an altered spelling. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 147.26.60.159 (talk) 21:10, 8 December 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Montpelier and Calais, Vermont

If one remembers correctly, Vermont was settled by the French before the British colonists settled there. It should follow that there are a couple towns in the state with French names. Montpelier and Calais are spelled like the French towns, but they have been heavily anglicized over the years. Locals really do call Montpelier "Mont-peel-iar" and Calais "Cal-lis", not the French pronunciations.

Twitchel 18:10, 24 August 2007 (UTC)Twitchel[reply]

Formatting

The "Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures" chart is interfering with the rest of the article, please fix this issue.

- Ahmed — Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.249.152.208 (talk) 03:09, 16 August 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Smallest capital

The following was removed for lack of a reference. Can anyone help? "Montpelier is the least-populous state capital in the United States, with a population of 7,954 (July 2006 est.)" The list of fifty capitals was a bit too long to look through! Really needs stand-alone reference. Student7 (talk) 12:32, 16 August 2008 (UTC)[reply]

No, this is pretty uncontroversially true. The next largest state capital is Pierre, with 14,000.--Loodog (talk) 14:29, 16 August 2008 (UTC)[reply]

picture

I would suggest deleting the current lead photo and replacing it with steepled one from transportation. The capitol is too obscure to see. Steeple is pleasant. Student7 (talk) 23:15, 4 May 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Average Annual Snowfall

I included this statistic in the climate section, but failed to source it. I have since corrected that. First ever Wiki edit...thank you! — Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.127.136.196 (talk) 03:15, 24 April 2012 (UTC)[reply]

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First settler

According to the short history "Montpelier, Vermont", by Hiram A. Huse (whom I suspect is from the town), which appears to be from the mid-1870s, the first settler of the town was a man named Joel Frizzel, and his red-haired Quebecois wife Mary ("a little red-haired Frenchwoman from Canada"), who built a house "opposite the mouth of the Dog River", or "in the Southeast corner of town on the bank of the river" (same thing). This is roughly where the Interstate overpasses and the Green Mountain Cemetary are today. It says "the grant of Montpelier was followed by a formal charter issued by Gov. Thomas Chittenden, August 14th, 1781. It continued as a town on paper only for five years, when Joel Frizzel, a trapper and a hunter, with his wifer Mary, a red-haired Frenchwoman from Canada, began living on the southwest corner of the town near the bank of the river. Frizzel has not been given until lately the credit of being the real first white settler; but he remained here at least until January 11th, 1794, when he finally deeded away the 100 acre lot he lived on". Apparently he had been there about a year when Col Davis arrived, and he assisted with surveying the town. Previously it talked about how the raiding party of 300 Indians traveled through what would later be the city of Montpelier, and up the Stevens branch while on the way to raid and burn Royalton in 1780 (Zadock Steele captured, etc), they camped "at the mouth of the Dog River, on the Berlin side, opposite the spot where nearly 6 years later, the first white settler in Montpleier located", which would put Frizzel right within town limits (if that mattered much), roughly where the Interstate ovepass and the Green Mountain Cemetary are now (I suspect more to the west; the land is poor where the cemetary is). And of course there is a whole lot of other stuff that is left out of this article as well.

Idumea47b (talk) 01:44, 4 May 2018 (UTC)[reply]

A Commons file used in this page has been nominated for speedy deletion

The file Montpelier, Vermont 1992.jpg on Wikimedia Commons has been nominated for speedy deletion. View the deletion reason at the Commons file description page. Community Tech bot (talk) 09:06, 25 May 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Montpelier Founder is not Davis

Montpelier was founded by Timothy Bigelow Mbigelow (talk) 23:04, 16 November 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Climate

As of 11/19/20, the climate data is incorrect and inconsistent with the cited source. I have fixed the issue several times in the past only to have it reverted to this incorrect data. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 150.209.39.248 (talk) 15:11, 19 November 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Location within a floodplain

If Montpelier was built on a floodplain, as mentioned in this PBS video, why does the text of the current version of this article not mention the word "floodplain" even a single time? 98.123.38.211 (talk) 05:07, 25 December 2023 (UTC)[reply]