Primary Sources
Allen, Ira. The Natural and Political History of the State of Vermont, One of the United States of America; to Which Is Added an Appendix Containing Answers to Sundry Queries Addressed to the Author. Rutland, Vt: C. E. Tuttle Co, 1969.
While Ira Allen did not witness all the accounts in his book, he was at the center of most of the founding activities of the State of Vermont. This should be the first book read by those interested in the founding of Vermont as a State.
The 1777 constitutional convention which established Vermont
In the east side town of Windsor, Vermont residents declared a “free and independent state of Vermont at the tavern of Elijah West on July 8, 1777. Courageously, Vermonters made this declaration in the face of a massive British Invasion of the state. General John Burgoyne led an 8000 man army from Canada down Lake Champlain threatening all of Vermont.
Remarkably, the Vermont constitution outlawed all slavery, the first abolition in any parts of the Americas. The constitution provided for almost all male suffrage and recognized the supremacy of the legislature over the executive branch.
