Vermont Architectural Resource Inventory (VARI)

Compiling an inventory of Vermont’s historic resources is the foundation of our preservation program. Statewide survey of properties began in earnest in 1967 and was strengthened by the Vermont Historic Preservation Act of 1975. Since that time, more than 30,000 historical and architectural properties have been surveyed and added to the state’s inventory. Originally known as the Historic Sites and Structures Survey (HSSS), this collection of survey information is now known as the Vermont Architectural Resource Inventory (VARI). Administered by the Division for Historic Preservation, the VARI is an essential part of our program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect Vermont’s historic and architectural resources.

VARI surveys document more than just big, fancy buildings. Indeed, they may document rural farmsteads, everyday buildings, worker housing, suburban planned developments and village centers, commercial buildings, and factories. Properties are documented in the VARI either through comprehensive surveys that document all of the resources in a community or individually when the historic or architectural significance of a property is evaluated as part of the Project Review or nomination processes.  To see what is documented in the VARI please use the Online Resource Center (ORC).

Vermont Architectural Resource Inventory Survey Forms

Use the  appropriate VARI form to record information about resources in your community. Completed forms and digital photographs can be emailed to Devin Colman, State Architectural Historian.

Individual Building VARI Survey Form (MS Word)

Historic District VARI Survey Form (MS Word)

Determination of Eligibility Form (MS Word)

Use the Determination of Eligibility (DOE) form to request an assessment of whether or not a property meets the State or National Registers Criteria for Evaluation of eligibility. A positive determination finds that a property possesses sufficient integrity to support its historic or architectural significance. A negative finding means the property lacks historic integrity and/or significance and is unlikely to be approved for listing.

Determinations of Eligibility are not official listings but do offer some of the same incentives and requirements. A property will not be formally nominated to the State or National Registers of Historic Places without proper notification to the property owner(s).