Burlington, whose metropolitan population was more than 100,000 as of 2009, is the largest city in the state of Vermont.http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ADPTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=40000US11755&-qr_name=ACS_2009_1YR_G00_DP5&-context=adp&-ds_name=&-tree_id=307&-_lang=en&-redoLog=false&-format= The city is located in the central northwest region of Vermont, along the eastern border of Lake Champlain.http://www.state.vt.us/vtmap/vtmp002.jpg Burlington is home to the University of Vermont, a public university of about 11,000 undergraduates.http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/burlington-vt/university-of-vermont-3696 As of 2009, nearly 42 percent of the city's residents had a Bachelor's degree or higher, as compared to 25 percent of all Americans.http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ADPTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=40000US11755&-qr_name=ACS_2009_1YR_G00_DP2&-context=adp&-ds_name=&-tree_id=307&-_lang=en&-redoLog=false&-format=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/00000.html

In the summer of 2010, Burlington was named by the magazine Kiplinger’s Personal Finance as number eight on its list of the 10 Best Cities of the Decade. The rankings were determined by cities' economic vitality, innovation and livability.http://www.kiplinger.com/magazine/archives/10-best-cities-2010-for-the-next-decade.html?si=1 Burlington made the list for the ingenuity of its environmentalism that "drives its economic growth."http://www.kiplinger.com/magazine/archives/best-cities-2010-burlington-vt.html

The town of Burlington was chartered in 1783 by Benning Wentworth, the mayor of New Hampshire at the time. The origin of the name is subject to debate, though it is generally believed to have been derived from the earldom of Burlington.http://books.google.com/books?id=uTBCXqOou0YC&pg=PA72&lpg=PA72&dq=burlington+Governor+Benning+Wentworth+1763&source=bl&ots=AJWI7kkzXS&sig=4qnk8JAA-b7SsYaUrTC_5p4EzKo&hl=en&ei=ZkAMTbziNMiVnAeDrNzTDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBcQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=burlington%20Governor%20Benning%20Wentworth%201763&f=false Burlington developed as an important place of trade with Canada, due to its prime location along the Winooski River and Lake Champlain.http://genealogytrails.com/ver/chittenden/history/burlington.html By the mid-1800s, three canals had been constructed (the Champlain Canal, the Erie Canal and the Chambly Canal), which connected the Hudson River, the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway.http://www.champlain.edu/About-Champlain/Our-Strengths/Our-Burlington-Campus/Burlington-History.html Burlington quickly became the one of the largest inland port in the United States at that time.http://books.google.com/books?id=uTBCXqOou0YC&pg=PA72&lpg=PA72&dq=burlington+Governor+Benning+Wentworth+1763&source=bl&ots=AJWI7kkzXS&sig=4qnk8JAA-b7SsYaUrTC_5p4EzKo&hl=en&ei=ZkAMTbziNMiVnAeDrNzTDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBcQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=burlington%20Governor%20Benning%20Wentworth%201763&f=false

The development of the railroad and other industries in the mid-1800s drew many immigrants to Burlington's manufacturing core. The lumber industry of Quebec, which had spurred the shipping industry of Burlington, declined by the end of the 19th century. http://books.google.com/books?id=uTBCXqOou0YC&pg=PA72&lpg=PA72&dq=burlington+Governor+Benning+Wentworth+1763&source=bl&ots=AJWI7kkzXS&sig=4qnk8JAA-b7SsYaUrTC_5p4EzKo&hl=en&ei=ZkAMTbziNMiVnAeDrNzTDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBcQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=burlington%20Governor%20Benning%20Wentworth%201763&f=false Meanwhile, the University of Vermont, incorporated in 1791, was attracting a demographic of educated people to Burlington who would venture into business, finance, law and academics. Today, the economy revolves around commerce, entrepreneurship and the arts.http://www.champlain.edu/About-Champlain/Our-Strengths/Our-Burlington-Campus/Burlington-History.html

Burlington is located at a latitude of 44° 28’N and a longitude of 73° 12’W, which is roughly the same latitude as Florence, Italy and Sapporo, Japan.http://www.travelmath.com/city/Burlington,+VT The city is located 90 miles southeast of Montreal, Canada, 220 miles northwest of Boston, Massachusetts, and 285 miles north of New York City, New York.http://www.uvm.edu/about_uvm/?Page=burlington/burlington_facts.html&SM=burlingtonsubmenu.html Average temperatures range from 18 degrees in January to about 70 degrees in July. The city receives an average of 81 total inches of snow each year.http://cdo.ncdc.noaa.gov/climatenormals/clim20/vt/431081.pdf

Along the shore of Lake Champlain, Burlington has a relatively low elevation of 95 feet but rises to 330 feet where the University of Vermont campus sits.http://www.historiclakes.org/explore/about_lakechamplain.htmhttp://cdo.ncdc.noaa.gov/climatenormals/clim20/vt/431081.pdf The city is surrounded by the Adirondack Mountains to the west in New York state and the Green Mountains to the east in central Vermont. The Adirondacks reach peaks of about 5,000 feet and the Green Mountains rise to approximately 4,300 feet above sea level.http://www.highpeaksclimbing.com/ADKs.htmhttp://www.mountainzone.com/mountains/detail.asp?fid=3594056 The 95-mile-long winding Winooski River, a tributary of Lake Champlain, borders the city to the north.http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/645507/Winooski-River

• Church Street Marketplace: A pedestrian zone lined with shops, restaurants and coffee shops.http://www.uvm.edu/about_uvm/?Page=burlington/burlington_facts.html&SM=burlingtonsubmenu.html
• The lakefront: An old railroad that has been turned into a 12-mile lakeside bike path for walkers, bladers, runners and cyclists.http://www.champlain.edu/About-Champlain/Our-Strengths/Our-Burlington-Campus/Burlington-History.html
• Ben & Jerry's Waterbury Factory: A touring facility where visitors can learn the history of Ben & Jerry's ice cream, which began in Burlington.http://www.benjerry.com/scoop-shops/factory-tours/
• Fleming Museum: A museum at the University of Vermont that houses the state's most comprehensive collection of art and anthropological artifacts.http://www.uvm.edu/~fleming/

• Orson Bean: Actorhttp://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004730/
• Ted Bundy: Serial killerhttp://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/853405/Ted-Bundy
• Grace Coolidge: First lady to Calvin Coolidgehttp://www.calvin-coolidge.org/html/grace_coolidge_commentaries.html
• John Dewey: Philosopher and leader of the progressive education movementhttp://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/160445/John-Dewey#
• "Birdie" Tebbets: All-star baseball catcherhttp://www.imdb.com/name/nm1207710/