Mildred Ellen Orton

Mildred Ellen Orton (February 9, 1911 – May 6, 2010) was an American businesswoman and author who co-founded the Vermont Country Store with her husband, Vrest Orton, in Weston, Vermont, in 1946.^[1]

Orton was born Mildred Ellen Wilcox at a farm near Manchester, Vermont, on February 9, 1911.^[1] She was the youngest of three siblings born to her parents, Erwin and Maria Hamilton Wilcox.^[1] Wilcox graduated in 1930 from Rutland Business College.^[1]

She married her husband, Vrest Orton, in 1936.^[1] The Ortons launched the original Vermont Country Store catalog business in Fall 1945.^[1] The couple opened the Vermont Country Store in 1946.^[1] The store was a replica of an original store that Vrest Orton's father had owned and operated in North Calais, Vermont.^[1] Mildred Orton co-ran the business until her retirement in 1978.^[1]

In 1947, Mildred Ellen Orton authored a cookbook, Cooking with Wholegrains, featuring whole grains instead of white flour.^[1] Orton developed her recipes utilizing stone ground grains from a gristmill in Weston, Vermont.^[1] Stone-ground grains were then introduced as a prominent product at the Vermont Country Store and catalog.^[1]

Mildred Ellen Orton died at her home in Weston, Vermont, on May 6, 2010, at the age of 99.^[1] She was survived by her son, Lyman Orton, who now runs Vermont Country Store; stepson, Geoffrey; eight grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. Her husband, Vrest, died in 1986.^[1]

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