Vermont became the first new U.S. state after the original thirteen, joining the Union on March 4, 1791. It was admitted as the fourteenth state under the Constitution.
Before statehood, Vermont existed as the independent Vermont Republic from 1777 to 1791. Its leaders had declared independence from neighboring claims and adopted a constitution that included an early prohibition on adult slavery. Vermont’s admission followed an agreement resolving its long-running territorial dispute with New York.
Congress admitted Vermont under the same constitutional framework used for later states. The new state entered the Union during George Washington’s presidency, shortly before Kentucky became the fifteenth state on June 1, 1792.
Vermont is sometimes confused with Kentucky because both joined soon after the original thirteen. Kentucky was the first state admitted south of the Ohio River, but Vermont holds the earlier overall admission date. Tennessee entered in 1796, and Maine entered in 1820.