1. The town of Bennington was officially chartered on March 11, 1749, by Governor Benning Wentworth of New Hampshire. The town was named in honor of the governor and quickly became an important center of trade and commerce in southern Vermont.

2. In 1793, the Vermont General Assembly chartered the University of Vermont in Burlington. The school officially opened in 1800 and is now one of the oldest and most prestigious institutions of higher learning in the United States.

3. On March 11, 1843, the state legislature approved a law that prohibited the sale of alcoholic beverages in Vermont. The law was known as the "Maine Law" and helped to establish Vermont as one of the first states to take a strong stance against alcohol consumption.

4. Vermont became the first state in the United States to abolish slavery on March 11, 1777. The state constitution included a provision that outlawed slavery and provided for the gradual emancipation of all slaves within the state.

5. On March 11, 1930, the town of St. Johnsbury was the site of a historic event when astronaut Alan Shepard was born. Shepard went on to become the first American to travel into space on May 5, 1961, and is remembered as a pioneer in the field of space exploration.