From the Crown Point Road to the Apple Festival: 250 Years of Apples in Springfield, Vermont
Apple growing has a surprisingly deep history in Springfield, Vermont—one that reaches back almost to the town’s earliest settlement. Springfield Apple Festival isn't simply using apples as a generic Vermont fall theme. It legitimately celebrates an agricultural tradition in Springfield that goes back to the community's earliest recorded history. Vermont itself recognizes the apple as the state fruit, and the state reports that Vermont orchards grow more than 150 varieties.
Springfield’s first apple trees
One of the most interesting references comes from Charles Horace Hubbard’s 1895 History of the Town of Springfield, Vermont. Hubbard describes the old Crown Point Road, constructed through the area in 1760, and identifies a military camping ground near what later became the town farm. He writes that “Here were the first apple-trees in town.”
That means Springfield's connection with apples dates to the 18th century, around the period when permanent European settlement was beginning. Springfield itself was chartered in 1761, and by 1771 the town had 27 families and 141 residents, many living along the Crown Point Road.
Apples become part of the Springfield farm
As Springfield developed, orchards became a normal feature of local farms. Apples were especially practical in early Vermont: they grew well in the climate, could be stored, and could be turned into cider, vinegar and other products.
Springfield's town history actually describes settlers planting orchards that produced so abundantly that there was more fruit than families needed. Some of that surplus went into cider and cider brandy. That fits the broader Vermont story. Apples became an important farm crop, and by the late 1800s improved transportation, new varieties, refrigeration, drying and packaging opened larger markets for Vermont-grown fruit.
The commercial-orchard era
By the 19th and early 20th centuries, apple growing was becoming more than simply something every farm did for itself. Vermont apples increasingly became a commercial crop shipped outside the immediate community. UVM describes apples as one of Vermont's historically important export crops. Springfield's best surviving example of that transition is Wellwood Orchards.
The orchard traces its roots back roughly a century. Vermont legislative testimony states that Joseph Wellwood purchased the orchard in 1924, and the Wellwood and Chapman families incorporated the business in 1954. Roy Mark and his family purchased it in 1981. When Mark took over, Wellwood was primarily a wholesale apple operation with a small retail store. It contained thousands of traditional full-sized apple trees.
From wholesale apples to pick-your-own
The next chapter is particularly interesting because it reflects what happened throughout New England agriculture. Rather than relying primarily on wholesale fruit markets, Wellwood moved toward selling directly to consumers. The trees were dramatically pruned so customers could pick apples from the ground rather than using ladders. Sources differ somewhat on the precise timing of the transition, but agree that it fundamentally changed the orchard's business model.
The farm subsequently expanded into berries and other fruits, a country store, wagon rides, a petting zoo, festivals and other attractions. Apples nevertheless remained its principal crop. In other words, Springfield's apple economy evolved from subsistence farming → farm orchards and cider → commercial wholesale production → direct-to-consumer agriculture and agritourism.
A Springfield tradition more than 250 years old
That creates a pretty compelling local-history story:
1760s: The first recorded apple trees appear along the Crown Point Road.
Late 1700s–1800s: Orchards become common on Springfield farms, supplying fruit and cider.
Late 1800s: Better transportation and commercial markets make apples an increasingly valuable Vermont agricultural product.
1920s: The orchard that becomes Wellwood is established as a significant local commercial operation.
1981 onward: The Mark family develops Wellwood from a largely wholesale orchard into a pick-your-own and agritourism destination.
Today: Apples remain part of Springfield's agricultural identity while also contributing to tourism and the fall visitor economy.
