This building was the first government fish hatchery in the state, predating the grand federal hatchery in St. Johnsbury and later state hatcheries. It is a simple, one-and-a-half-story long rectangle, the southern thirty feet in length added in 1897 to expand capacity. Four wooden ventilators crown the roof, and a hipped-roof, one-story porch on square posts shelters the gable end and two entrances. Inside, four steps lead down to the below-grade, poured-concrete hatch room. In 1912 these replaced the original at-grade wooden fish tanks and flooring that had rotted. The structure encapsulates the rapid evolution of hatchery design and is the basis for state hatcheries built in Bennington, Salisbury, and elsewhere. It is also a good example of the wooden building materials and techniques of the time. When contrasted with the federal hatchery in St. Johnsbury of 1893, the low-cost, functional approach to state facilities becomes apparent. Among other buildings on the site is an ice house/cold storage unit (where meat was stored until dry pellet food became the norm in 1957). The hatchery is still in operation and open to the public.