South Hero, VT
Information Courtesy Virtual Vermont
South Hero, Vermont Real Estate Information
- Grand Isle County
- Chartered: October 27, 1779 (Vermont Charter)
- Area: 29,710 Acres / 46.42 Square Miles [ 49* ]
- Coordinates (Geographic Center): 73°18'W 44°39'N
- Altitude ASL: 240 feet
- Population (US Census, 2000): 1,696 [ 96* ]
- Population Density (persons per square mile): 36.5 [ 116* ]
- Tax Rate: $2.7647 ('06)
- Equalized Value: $285,298,091 ('03)
Originally, South Hero, North Hero and Grand Isle were granted to Ethan Allen, Samuel Herrick and 363 other Revolutionary War veterans as a single town known as Two Heroes. Hamilton Child's 1883 Gazetteer of Franklin and Grand Isle Counties says the name referred to Ethan and his brother Ira. However, Ethan and Herrick are named first in the grant, while Ira is considerably down the list after Jonas Fay, Thomas Chittenden and other founding fathers, many of whom were as respected as Ira.
In 1798, Two Heroes was divided into North Hero, Middle Hero and South Hero, the last two sharing a representative to the legislature, hence they were not entirely separate towns. This arrangement was not entirely satisfactory: in 1810, Middle Hero was given complete autonomy and renamed Grand Isle, which is what the French had originally called the whole island.
The first settlement was made in 1783 by Colonel Ebenezer Allen, a cousin of Ethan and Ira. He had served under Colonel Herrick with Roger's Rangers during the last of the French and Indian Wars and later had a notable career with the Green Mountain Boys. Stalwart and steady, in many ways he was the direct antithesis of Ethan. The two were great friends, however, and it was Ebenezer whom Ethan had been visiting in South Hero the night he became ill and died. At different times, Ebenezer held every town office there was. His home was at the southernmost tip of the island, giving the promontory its name, Allens Point.