Dorset, Vermont

Dorset - Approximately five miles north of Manchester on Route 30 is the pristine little town of Dorset, a well-preserved community with a charming town green bordered by painted white-clapboard houses with green shutters. Home to the first Vermont convention in 1776, Dorset now draws visitors with its much-respected Dorset Theatre Festival, swimming areas and deluxe gourmet fare restaurants.

The town occupies the highest valley between New York City and Montreal, Canada. Nineteenth century physicians recommended these clean, cool environs as restorative havens from crowded, polluted cities.

The marble quarries at the edge of Dorset are said to be the oldest in the country and were once a major part of Dorset's economy. They provided the marble for landmarks such as the New York City Library as well as for the marble sidewalks which lace the town and the all marble church next to the village green. Yesterday's quarries now are today's popular swimming holes.