Hello everyone! I speak to you today as a graduate of Highland High school in the town of Gilbert, the great state of Arizona, and my beloved home of the United States of America. Initially graduation was supposed to be the 23rd, but the principal's daughter was graduating from a different school on the 23rd, so she changed it to the 22nd. Now that I am an educated citizen, the pressure is on for me to deliver even better WW2 effects threads! Today I'll tell you about the oft forgotten and rarely mentioned Vermont, a state I only hear about with the mentioning of Senator Bernie Sanders. I learned a lot more about Vermont with this thread, and I hope you all learn something new today, Enjoy!! Vermont Pre-WW2 Known as the Green Mountain State, Vermont had the second smallest population in the U.S with 350,000 people in 1940. Even Rhode Island, which is 4 times smaller than Vermont, had twice as many people. Why? There is no single reason, but many reasons, some that reach as far back as the 1840's. Vermont became the first non 13 colony state to be admitted to the Union in 1791, it was admitted purely because of the amount of wealth in the state, with businessmen, politicians, and Architects making up the majority of the state. Even in the 1790's, Vermont had little to contribute in the way of natural resources, or even agriculture. Vermont's main export was dairy products (That's still the case today), and there was no shortage of that in the other states. Vermont was where the rich citizens lived the life, and the poor dairy farmers worked to death. There was little to no incentive for people to move to Vermont, and those living in Vermont had few career paths to follow. In the 1840's, the middle of Westward expansion, thousands of Vermont's citizens got up and left to find a better life in the west. This migration West lasted for about 100 years, and kept the population from growing above 400,000 people. With the start of the Industrial revolution in America, Vermont was slow to adapt and grow it's industrial base unlike it's other East coast neighbours. Burlington was among one of the few cities in Vermont to Industrialize heavily, which is why it has remained the most populated city in Vermont since the 1890's. Vermont also had the disadvantage of being "radical" in both social and political matters, even way back in the beginnings of the state. Vermont was vehemently abolitionist before and during the Civil War, and was one of the first states to outlaw slavery in it's constitution. Vermont was, and has been one of the least religious states in the U.S, with only 60% of the population believing in God, or being part of organized religion in 1940 (It's 43% now). Vermont was also one of the leading prohibition states in the 20's, with more than half of the state approving of the prohibition of alcohol. The radical and unique beliefs of Vermont made other states hesitant in trading, or working with Vermont, another factor hindering the state's economic ability. With the onset of the Great Depression, Vermont was financially ruined, with a small industrial capacity, and common exports, Vermont had no good way of bringing in income, the situation in Vermont during the 30's and early 40's was bleak, and it would take a Worldwide war to turn things around. Vermont WW2 Before hostilities began for the U.S in WW2, Vermont was preparing for war. In 1940, Vermont began preparing it's factories for a wartime workload and production, and the Agricultural sector was boosted with the demand of dairy products across the Atlantic. When war finally did breakout, Vermont was ready to make the sacrifices and adjustments needed to help the war effort. The Vermont Historical society said this of the state's efforts during the war, "Orders from the U.S. government and government contractors for machine tools, as well as parts for aircraft, tanks, radar equipment, and guns. Other industries throughout the state retooled or adapted their manufacturing equipment to produce armaments and parts. Woolen manufacturing surged in Windsor County, Winooski, and Northfield. The marble sheds in Rutland produced wooden aircraft parts and packing boxes. Barre’s granite sheds made anchor chains and wood-sheathed bumpers for the U.S. Navy. Shelburne Shipyards built PT boats, small tugboats, and submarine chasers. The agricultural sector also got a boost from combined military and civilian demand for milk, eggs, poultry, and maple products." Besides Vermont's contribution in war materials, food, and manpower, Vermont had only 2 military and government installations during the war, Ethan Allen Army airfield, and an Army recruitment center in Montpelier. Almost 13% of the State's population went off to fight in the war, 1500 of whom were women, the highest percentage of women and men volunteers in any of the other states during the war. 5% of these service men and women were killed or wounded in the war, with 874 dying in total. Vermont Post WW2 Like many other states after WW2, Vermont suffered a slight slump in it's economy during the 50's and 60's, but from the 70's onward, Vermont has been very successful financially. Vermont is ranked 13th in Personal income, but has one of the biggest wage gaps of any other state because of the divide between the very rich, and the very poor. Vermont has a slightly high 4.7% unemployment rate, but is generally a stable and reliable worker state. Agriculture still plays a significant role on the state's economy, but the Industrial complex has provided most of the state's income.Vermont recently approved legalizing recreational marijuana, and was one of the leading state's in pushing for Same-Sex marriage, leading to more controversy and scrutiny, not to mention the attention Bernie Sanders brought to the state during 2016's circus of an election. I still am not quite sure what to think about Vermont, but I appreciate their story, and dedication to perfecting Democracy and trying to provide Liberty and Justice for all. Montpelier greeting card 1940's Fort Ethan Allen Bennington Vermont 1941 Vermont Today Burlington Today Sorry...........I just had too
