Developed in the mid-19th century around the facilities of the Central Vermont Railway, the area features a high concentration of well-preserved Second Empire and late Victorian commercial architecture.

The Central Vermont Railway introduced service to the town in 1848, and its depot became the new focus for commercial and industrial activity.

Depot Square is lined with brick commercial buildings built in the 1870s and 1880s, that are fine examples of Second Empire and Late Victorian architecture.

[2] The historic district is organized around the three sets of railroad tracks that run roughly east–west, roads that parallel them on either side (forming Depot Square), and stretches of Main Street (Vermont Route 12) and Pleasant Street that extend north from railroad crossing to their point of junction.

The train depot is located at Salisbury and Main streets, and commercial buildings line Main and Salisbury streets, and Merchants Row in this area.