Glastenbury is an unincorporated town in Bennington County, in the southwestern region of Vermont.
Life was hard in Glastenbury because of it's high altitude and rough terrain, giving it an extremely short growing season with very cold and long winters. Because Glastenbury had a mountain of wood to burn, charcoal burning became a big business in the town for many years.
When the Glastenbury-Woodford-Bennington railroad was completed in 1872, trains of 12-14 cars traveled to and from Glastenbury and Bennington every day carrying lumber, charcoal, alcohol and a few passengers.
By the late 1880's, the mountains were stripped of all mature trees, wiping out the charcoal business. In 1894, the old railroad was revived with the attempt to turn Glastenbury into a tourist attraction. Later that year, however, a major flood wiped out the track and put it out of business forever.
Along with Somerset, Glastenbury is one of two Vermont towns where the population levels have dropped so low that the town is unincorporated. The town has no local government and the town's affairs are handled by a state-appointed supervisor. Glastenbury had an official municipal history of 103 years; in existence from 1834 to 1937.
There are only a handful of people who call the town home for a few weeks each summer. Aside from The Long Trail, the only access is one dirt road entering from Shaftsbury, to total no more than two miles of road in the entire town. US Route 7 snakes in and out acouple of times in the northwest corner, with signs telling you that you are in Glastenbury.
