By area the largest town in the state, Chittenden was named after Thomas Chittenden, one of the Green Mountain Boys and governor of both the independent Vermont Republic, and later, the state of Vermont. Chittenden and his son Noah were among the town's principal land grantees, although the governor may have never visited the area. The Chittenden Reservoir is a popular regional swimming and boating area.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 74.2 square miles, of which 73.0 square miles is land and 1.2 square miles is water. It is the largest town by area in Vermont, slightly larger than Stowe in Lamoille County. The town is split in two by a ridge of the Green Mountains, and only the western half of the town is settled. Much of the town remains unbroken forest.
Demographics
At the 2000 census, there were 1,182 people, 451 households and 345 families residing in the town. The population density was 16.2 per square mile. There were 585 housing units at an average density of 8.0 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 98.48% White, 0.17% African American, 0.17% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, and 1.10% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.25% of the population. There were 451 households of which 37.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.1% were married couplesliving together, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.5% were non-families. 18.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 2.97. 26.3% of the population were under the age of 18, 5.8% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 30.3% from 45 to 64, and 8.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.7 males. The median household income was $45,313 and the median family income was $52,596. Males had a median income of $35,556 versus $31,776 for females. The per capita income for the town was $21,278. About 2.9% of families and 6.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.1% of those under age 18 and 5.2% of those age 65 or over.
