This town, originally called Middle Hero, changed its name to Grand Isle in 1810. Captain Jedediah Hyde, owner of the town of Hyde Park and a veteran of Valley Forge, was among the first settlers in 1783. Today the Hyde Log Cabin, the oldest in original condition in the United States, is open to the public. Other popular tourist attractions included the Ed Weed Fish Culture Station, a new state-of-the art facility for producing cold-water species including trout and salmon, and the year-round Grand Isle Ferry. For generations this was primarily a farming community. Dairy farming is still important in Grand Isle, but recent years have produced rapid population growth as people who work in nearby Chittenden County find the tranquil Islands a congenial place to raise a family.
