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Vermont · Champlain Valley North · St. Albans · #288
Franklin County, Vermont
St. Albans and the northern Champlain Valley - Vermont's dairy capital, the site of the northernmost land action of the Civil War (the St. Albans Raid, 1864), and the gateway to Quebec for Vermont's most agricultural region. Property tax, courts, public records, probate, and senior services for Franklin County residents.
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Franklin County's assessment ratio means effective tax rates are low — but incorrect appraisals still cost money. Ownwell manages the appeal with no upfront cost.
Office: Franklin County Emergency Management – via Vermont Emergency Management regional coordination
Alert System: VT-Alert
FEMA Region: Region 1
Notes: Northwestern Vermont county bordering Quebec and Lake Champlain; flooding along the Missisquoi River, reinforced by the historic July 2023 Vermont floods; winter storm risk; St. Albans is the county seat (shire town)
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: I-89, the primary corridor connecting to Burlington south and the Canadian border north
Transit: Green Mountain Transit – regional bus service
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Individual town governments (St. Albans and others) handle permitting
Services: Building permits handled at the municipal level; floodplain permits significant given the county’s flood exposure
Notes: As in all Vermont counties, permitting authority rests primarily with individual towns rather than the county itself
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Franklin County Veterans Service Officer (via Vermont Office of Veterans Affairs regional coordination)
State VSO: Vermont Office of Veterans Affairs – veterans.vermont.gov
VA Medical: White River Junction VA Medical Center (accessible south)
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: St. Albans Free Library; other town libraries throughout the county
Services: Books; e-books; public computers; Wi-Fi
Parks & Recreation
PARZ & RECREATION
Key Assets: St. Albans’s historic Taylor Park and downtown, once a significant Central Vermont Railway hub; significant dairy farming heritage, with Franklin County recognized as one of the leading dairy-producing counties accessible anywhere in Vermont; Lake Carmi State Park; the Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge along Lake Champlain
Notes: Franklin County’s status as one of the leading dairy-producing counties accessible anywhere in Vermont, combined with St. Albans’s historic railroad heritage, give the county a distinctive combination of agricultural and industrial-era identity
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
GIS Portal: Vermont Center for Geographic Information (statewide) – vcgi.vermont.gov
Parcel Search: Vermont statewide parcel viewer
Addressing/911: Franklin County E-911 Addressing – via town governments and Vermont Enhanced 911 Board
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Shelter: Franklin County Humane Society (confirm current arrangement)
Landfill/Transfer: Northwest Solid Waste Management District – regional transfer stations
Recycling: Curbside and drop-off recycling required statewide under Vermont’s universal recycling law
Environmental Complaints: Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation – dec.vermont.gov | (802) 828-1556
Notes: Lake Champlain and Missisquoi Bay water quality management, including significant agricultural phosphorus-runoff reduction efforts tied to the county’s substantial dairy industry, are significant regional environmental priorities
NOTES
Franklin County is one of the leading dairy-producing counties accessible anywhere in Vermont, an agricultural identity that also drives the county’s most significant environmental priority: reducing phosphorus runoff into Lake Champlain and Missisquoi Bay from farming operations. St. Albans’s historic role as a Central Vermont Railway hub adds a further layer of industrial heritage to the county’s largely rural, agricultural character.
About Franklin County
Franklin County is Vermont’s dairy heartland – the northern Champlain Valley’s broad agricultural landscape that produces more milk per acre than almost anywhere in New England, and the site of one of the Civil War’s strangest military actions.
St. Albans (the county seat, population ~7,000) is famous for the St. Albans Raid of October 19, 1864 – the northernmost land action of the Civil War. A group of approximately 21 Confederate soldiers, operating out of Canada, rode into St. Albans, robbed three banks of $208,000, wounded several citizens, and escaped back across the Canadian border. The Canadian government’s refusal to extradite the raiders created a significant diplomatic crisis between the US and Britain (whose colony Canada then was). The raid is one of the most dramatic episodes in Vermont history and a reminder that the Civil War touched even the most remote northern communities.
St. Albans also hosts the annual Vermont Maple Festival – one of Vermont’s most beloved celebrations of the maple syrup industry, held each spring to celebrate the completion of the sugaring season.
Franklin County’s dairy industry is among the most productive in Vermont – the county’s large farms, cooler climate, and proximity to major milk processors make it a cornerstone of Vermont’s agricultural economy.
Swanton – on the Missisquoi River near Lake Champlain – is home to a significant Abenaki community, the Missisquoi Abenaki Tribe, whose traditional territory encompasses much of the Champlain Valley.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Vermont requires municipal assessment at 100% of fair market value. Each of Franklin County’s 15 municipalities has its own listers.
Appeal process: File with Board of Civil Authority within 30 days. If denied, appeal to Vermont Director of Property Valuation and Review, then Vermont Superior Court (Environmental Division).
Income Sensitivity: File HS-122 annually. Vermont estate tax above $5 million. Vermont does NOT recognize Transfer on Death deeds.
OWNWELL CTA: Franklin County Board of Civil Authority 30-day deadline. Dairy farm land values require agricultural-specific assessment expertise. Income Sensitivity for households under ~$90K. Vermont estate tax at $5M. Ownwell manages the appeal with no upfront cost.
Recommended
Franklin County Board of Civil Authority 30-day deadline. Dairy farm land values require agricultural-specific assessment expertise. Income Sensitivity for households under ~$90K. Vermont estate tax at $5M. Ownwell manages the appeal with no upfront cost.
Courts & Legal
Courts & Legal
The Franklin County Superior Court at 36 Lake Street, St. Albans (802-524-7997) handles all civil, criminal, family, and probate matters. The Franklin County Clerk at 36 Lake Street (802-524-3863) maintains county records. Land records at each Town Clerk’s office – Vermont Land Records Online.
Vermont does NOT recognize Transfer on Death deeds. Vermont probate: Superior Court.
Abenaki tribal estate planning: The Missisquoi Abenaki’s presence in Franklin County creates specific estate planning considerations – Vermont recognized the Abenaki’s state tribal status (the Elnu Abenaki Tribe and Nulhegan Band have also received recognition), but Abenaki members do not hold federal trust land in Vermont (Vermont’s Abenaki tribes are state-recognized, not federally recognized). Estate planning for Abenaki members involves Vermont law for all property.
Quebec cross-border estate: Franklin County’s proximity to Quebec creates cross-border estate planning needs similar to Orleans County – coordination between Vermont law and Quebec’s civil law succession system for estates with property in both jurisdictions.
Senior Services: The Franklin-Grand Isle Area Agency on Aging (802-524-6555) at 181 S. Main Street, St. Albans coordinates senior centers, home-delivered meals, transportation, Vermont SHIP Medicare counseling, and connections to Vermont Medicaid programs.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
PROBATE DIVISION
Franklin Probate Division of the Vermont Superior Court, 17 Church St, St. Albans, VT 05478
(802) 524-7973
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Franklin Probate Division, St. Albans (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
In Vermont, MOST vital and land records are actually kept at the TOWN level, not the county level.
Local societies
No dedicated Franklin County-wide genealogical society was confirmed in available directories, though numerous town-level historical societies exist within the county.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Vermont Superior Court, Franklin Probate Division 17 Church Street, St. Albans, VT 05478 (802) 524-4112
Franklin County was founded December 1, 1796, named for Benjamin Franklin, in Northwest Vermont on the Canadian border, shire town St. Albans. Vermont has ONE probate court per county, operating as the Probate Division of the Superior Court.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Vermont has NOT adopted the Uniform Probate Code – it maintains its own probate framework under Title 14 of the Vermont Statutes Annotated, administered through the Probate Division in each county.
Small Estate Procedure (14 V.S.A. § 1901) – available when the estate’s fair market value is $45,000 or less AND consists entirely of personal property (a timeshare interest is the sole real-property exception, per 32 V.S.A. § 3619(a)). Unlike many states, this is NOT a self-executing affidavit presented directly to a bank – it opens an actual probate case, filed with the Probate Division. The petitioner must be the sole beneficiary under a will or sole heir if intestate, and must also be the sole fiduciary. Filing requires: a petition to open, a list of interested persons, the filing fee, an original death certificate, an inventory, an affidavit of paid/outstanding debts and funeral expenses, a bond without surety in the amount of the estate’s value, and the will if one exists. Non-consenting interested parties get notice and 14 days to object. If the estate later proves worth more than $45,000, the fiduciary must petition to convert it to full administration.
Waiver of Administration (14 V.S.A. § 1852) – a separate, newer mechanism available when the personal representative is the SOLE heir or beneficiary; if granted, it waives the inventory requirement and the bond, and the estate can close with just a single affidavit of administration filed 6 months to 1 year after appointment. No dollar threshold applies to this specific mechanism.
Full/Standard Administration – the default path for estates that don’t qualify for the above, involving formal appointment of an executor or administrator, creditor notice, inventory, and court-supervised distribution.
Step 2: filing for administration
The personal representative (or an interested party) files a Petition to Open an Estate with the Franklin Probate Division – within 30 days of death if a will exists.
Required documents include the original will (if any) and codicils, a list of estate property and its approximate value, deed book/page numbers for any real estate, a certified death certificate, and a list of interested persons.
The court reviews the petition, holds a hearing if needed, and appoints the executor or administrator, issuing letters.
The personal representative provides notice to creditors – Vermont’s creditor claim period is 4 months.
The personal representative inventories assets, pays valid debts and taxes, and manages the estate.
Remaining assets are distributed to beneficiaries or heirs, and the estate is closed with final accounting.
What it costs
Filing fees vary by estate value; small estate/summary probate filings run roughly $50–$110 per 32 V.S.A. § 1434(a)(30). Confirm current Franklin County fees directly, or ask about a fee waiver if needed.
Vermont does not publish a fixed statutory fee schedule for attorneys or personal representatives; reasonable compensation is standard practice.
Vermont has an active STATE ESTATE TAX: a $5,000,000 exemption, with a flat 16% rate applied to the portion of the estate above that threshold. This is separate from and in addition to the federal estate tax (roughly $15 million exemption for 2026) – an estate can owe Vermont tax even when it owes no federal tax.
Vermont does NOT have a separate inheritance tax.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
PROBATE DIVISION
Franklin Probate Division of the Vermont Superior Court, 17 Church St, St. Albans, VT 05478
(802) 524-7973
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
17 Church St, St. Albans, VT 05478
(802) 524-2121
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
Description
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
20 Houghton St, St. Albans, VT 05478
(802) 524-7970
Economic Services Office
20 Houghton St, St. Albans, VT 05478
(802) 524-7912
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Vermont Department of Health, St. Albans District Office – (802) 524-7970
Services: Immunizations; WIC; environmental health; vital records
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