Charles Paine (April 15, 1799 – July 6, 1853) was an American Whig politician, woolen mill owner, merchant, railroad builder, and the 15th governor of Vermont.

[3][4] Paine moved to Northfield, Vermont in the early part of the nineteenth century to run the family woolen mill.

He had various other business interests including a hotel and a store, but he is most often remembered as the individual who brought railroads to Vermont.

[6] As the founder and president of the Vermont Central Railroad Paine built its headquarters in his home town of Northfield, despite the hilly terrain, earning the enmity of residents of larger, more accessible nearby towns.

Paine died in Waco, Texas after three weeks of dysentery while helping the Southern Pacific Railroad choose a route.