Hey nerds! Growing up in Connecticut does not guarantee that you ever learned Hartford history. How do you start to patch those knowledge holes if you’re beyond formal schooling?

Indoors

  • Hartford History Center: Use books, maps, city records, photographs, and more to learn about anything from who was living on your street before it was officially a street, to who signed petitions to get bridges replaced — bridges that predated the burial of the Park River. There is a fee for scanning or making photocopies, but otherwise, this is a free service. They offer free online research tools.

    “Party Dog”, on display in the “That’s Weird” exhibit at Connecticut Historical Society
  • Connecticut Historical Society: There are a few different things happening in this space. The museum has Connecticut-specific exhibits. “That’s Weird” is the current exhibit through April 2018. Secrets of the Veeder House tours are offered sporadically. Free admission to the museum is offered on the first Saturday of each month. The Waterman Research Center is housed at CHS and requires a fee, so if you’re going to go, it’s with a mission and not just because you’re killing time (unless you’re made of money, in which case, How you doin’?). There are online research tools available at no charge.
  • Connecticut State Library: It’s a library, so basic services are free for Connecticut residents. Online research tools are available. The Museum of Connecticut History is housed here; entry is free.
  • Connecticut State Capitol: Self-guided and free guided tours are available. Gum chewing is not permitted during tours.
  • Wadsworth Atheneum: One of the weirdest juxtapositions I’ve experienced has been looking at the Colt gun collection while listening to Christmas music permeating the museum during The Festival of Trees and Traditions. It’s a little like falling inside of a Tarantino movie. So, there are the guns and the many things (allegedly) made out of The Charter Oak. Then, there is the series of paintings depicting Hartford in four directions. Free admission for Hartford residents.
  • Connecticut Old State House: Most of my visits here are simply to visit the Oddities, but the HIstory is All Around Us exhibit on the bottom level is an interactive way to see how suburban sprawl negatively impacted Hartford during the later part of the 20th century. You can tour the actual old State House rooms, if that’s the kind of thing that floats your boat. Adult admission is $6.
  • Butler-McCook House & Garden: This is the yellow house at Capitol Avenue and Main Street. There are tours available for a fee.
  • Mark Twain House & Museum: It’s $6 to visit the museum; $20 for the museum and a tour of the Twain house.
  • Harriet Beecher Stowe Center: This includes the Stowe House and Katharine Seymour Day House, along with a research center focused mostly on Stowe, but extending to others who lived in the vicinity (“Nook Farm neighborhood”). Free admission for Hartford residents.

 

Outdoors

  • Ancient Burying Ground: Self-guided tours are available year-round.
  • Cedar Hill Cemetery: You can take self-guided tours year-round. During warmer months, low-cost tours are given a few times per month. The ultimate experience, though, is the Hallowed History Lantern Tour on an evening near Halloween. Learn about deceased Hartford residents by seeing their stories come to life via character actors.

    Shoeleather History Tour buttons
  • Shoeleather History Tours: If there’s a self-guided option available, I usually take it because I need to move at my own pace. Steve Thornton’s walking tours are an exception. He’s engaging, conversational, and though he’s knowledgeable, his stories are not delivered on autopilot. Go to his website and get on his email list to learn about upcoming tour dates. A donation is requested, but he does not turn away people who are unable to pay.
  • Coltsville National Historic Park Tours: Offered seasonally for the last two years, we will see what happens when the park officially opens.
  • Jewish Historical Society of Greater Hartford Bus Tours: Learn about Hartford’s Jewish history by seeing the former synagogues and hearing about leaders in the community. This bus tour actually begins in West Hartford on Bloomfield Avenue. They do not have any planned currently, but check back to their site for updates.

 

Reading and Listening

  • Wicked Hartford: If you’re ready to read an account of Hartford’s history that has not been sanitized, go pick up a copy of this book. Learn about accusations of baby farming, the labor issues surrounding Brainard Field’s creation, and what the “BB” curb markings indicate. There is, of course, an entire chapter devoted to Sam Colt.
  • Visit the downtown Barnes & Noble and check out the section devoted to books about Hartford. A number of these are primarily collections of photographs with captions and along the theme of “this was here and now it’s gone.”
  • Hartford Preservation Alliance: They sometimes have tours, but they’re really getting a mention for their informative website. Find out about Hartford’s war monuments, old buildings, and more.
  • Connecticut Explored: a magazine about Connecticut history
  • Grating the Nutmeg: A podcast about Connecticut history