Barre is often twinned with the nearby Vermont state capital of Montpelier in local media and businesses.

But dissatisfied with the name Wildersburgh, citizens renamed the town after Isaac Barré, a champion of the American Colonies.

At a town-meeting of the inhabitants of this tract held in September, 1793, it was agreed that a house of worship should be erected, and it was voted that the man who would give the most towards building the same should have the right to name the township.

Millstone Hill is now the site of a recreational, wooded trail network, where the mining holes and grout piles are still peppered throughout.

In the 1920s and 1930s, a number of granite strikes roiled the city; some disputes concerned wages, but workers increasingly mobilized to address health and hazard in the quarries and "sheds."

The strike of 1922, arguably fought to a draw, raised ethnic tensions; French Canadians were painted as strikebreakers.

The old Socialist Labor Party Hall is still standing and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.

"Barre Gray" granite is sought after worldwide for its fine grain, even texture, and superior weather resistance.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.0 square miles (10 km2), all land.

Alfred Hitchcock's movie The Trouble With Harry premiered at the Paramount Theater in Barre on September 27, 1955.

[21] Barre City has a "Council-Manager" form of government, and mayors serve two-year terms, with nonpartisan elections held in March.

Councilors serve staggered two-year terms, so one council seat from each ward is up for election every March.

Memorial Auditorium (Burlington) The quarter-mile, high-banked Thunder Road International Speedbowl is the premier motorsports venue in the state and associated with notable NASCAR figures Ken Squier and Dave Moody.

Thunder Road is also frequented by the American Canadian Tour late-model series of New England, New York, and southeastern Canada.