[1] The town of Newport, located at the southern end of Lake Memphremagog, was a sleepy agricultural area until 1863, when the Passumpsic Railroad began service.

The area then boomed, its economy raised by increases in lumbering and tourism on the lake.

[2] The city's main downtown area remains that of the original village, set on a small peninsula jutting eastward into the southernmost finger of the lake.

A bridge was built from the peninsula to the eastern shore of the lake in 1832, carrying the main road from Derby to Burlington.

The cluster of civic buildings includes, in addition to the courthouse complex, the Federal courthouse, post office and customs house building, the former National Guard armory that now serves as city hall, and the Goodrich Memorial Library, a fine example of Romanesque architecture.