The Norwichtown Historic District contains a grassy triangle, more or less bordered by Town Street,…read moreWest Town Street and Elm Avenue. You'll find this marker right there. It tells the story of the land that became Norwich, CT. The Norwich Green became a hotspot for "trade, merchandise, public business, military exercises, shows, sports, festivals", and eventually political demonstrations against the ruling British. It's a 2-sided marker from the CT Historical Commission in the familiar white lettering on a blue background. There is a different inscription on each side. The marker was dedicated in 1971 and is in pretty good condition.

This library is a little hard to see from the road as you're traveling through the town green, so…read morewatch for the library sign. The parking lot is a good size, and you can access the building on the main floor through the front door, or on the side door and take the stairs or elevator to where you need to go. Great elevator, it barely felt like it was moving and was fast. The librarians were very friendly, even the adult section had some Halloween decor (which is so much fun!) and overall a very friendly vibe.

This is a beautiful library. The Salem Library is located in a cluster of other town buildings…read morealong a busy road. They are all surprisingly brightly painted white. The parking lot is in the back, and has lots of room unless perhaps there's an event. The ceilings in the middle are huge, with lots of cute decor on the shelves. The sides each have more customized areas, like children's and a wall of movies. The people there were very friendly and charming, even though I popped in close to their closing time!

It is small with only two rooms (a ground-level schoolroom plus a second-floor schoolroom), but…read morepacked with historical information. The first floor introduces you to Nathan Hale and his teaching here in 1775. Upstairs offers more of a classroom feel, plus a special exhibit on spying in the American Revolution. If you're lucky enough to run into museum guide Debra Dickey, feel free to ask her any question about Hale or the Revolution; she's a real font of knowledge. I didn't encounter any other guides, so can't vouch for them, but the poster displays also provide a great depth of information even in lieu of conversation. The schoolhouse is not in its original location, and indeed has moved to six times since Hale taught here. But it has been lovingly restored for over 115 years, and is entirely supported by donations - so feel free to leave a few dollars in the collection plate when you go. For a small museum, it is well done.

A window to the…read moreworld The Ashaway public library was established back in 1871 when a group of people in the area decided the town needed a public reading room. In 1907 the library moved into it's present location and has been modernized and expanded throughout the years. In recent years two major additions has dramatically increased it's size and capabilities. Although not still not a large library by many standards, the Ashaway Library offers the usually reference materials, biographies, history, mystery and classics. Plus more than 40 periodicals and audio and video tapes. Like most of the smaller community libraries, Ashaway has programs for kids, book discussion groups and lots of annual events like book, bake and plant sales. Holiday strolls, sing alongs, teddy bear picnics, ice cream socials are also put on throughout the year. A lot of things going on in this place besides just books The librarians working here were exceptional friendly and helpful and went out of their way to tell me the history of the library and town. The library is only partially government funded and most of the financial resources come from volunteer fund raising, local businesses, individual contributions and philanthropic foundations. Ashaway is a great model of how a small local library should operate.

Unveiled with considerable ceremony on June 13, 1883, the Stonington Civil War Memorial (formerly…read moreknown as the Soldiers' Monument at Mystic Bridge) is a subtly respectful remembrance of the town's Union veterans. It stands behind a low fence in a traffic circle on US-1 between the Mystic River Bascule Bridge and the Mystic Amtrak station. On the base, it is engraved "Erected by Charles H. Mallory in memory of the soldiers and sailors of Stonington who served in the War of the Rebellion 1861-1865." Charles Henry Mallory was a shipping tycoon and philanthropist whose Mallory Steamship Line assisted in connecting New York to southern ports. With a strong connection to Mystic's maritime heritage, he collaborated with the local post of the Grand Army of the Republic's Williams to fund the $5,000 granite memorial as a show of civic appreciation. The monument is about 19 feet tall and has a granite pedestal with a soldier figure on top. It was designed by James G. Batterson. The granite came from Westerly, Rhode Island, which is known for its exquisite stonework. The monument's use of concave and convex curves in the pedestal is a design flourish that would become more prevalent in Neo-Classical Revival statues of the 1890s. [Review 1070 of 2025 - 123 in Connecticut - 24624 overall]

Fact- during my childhood in the Bronx, the local high school was named DeWitt Clinton High School…read more I played a lot of stickball and basketball there. Later I learned that DeWitt was quite a public servant, serving as a Senator from NY (1802-03), Mayor of NYC (1803-1815), and later as Governor of NY (1817-1822). That's quite a Triple Crown. Today, while reading the Clinton CT Historical marker, I learned about one more of his accomplishments - the honor that Clinton, CT was named for him. The marker is located on the lawn just to the right of Clinton's Town Hall. It's a 2-sided marker from the CT Historical Commission, in the familiar white lettering on a blue background. The marker has the same text on both sides. The 1977 marker is in an uneven condition. One side is in pretty good shape, with a fairly bright and unfaded blue background and white lettering. The other side was not as fortunate, because I saw various of points of failure in the form of fading in both the blue background and white lettering. The full text reads: Settled in 1663 and then known as Homonoscitt Plantation, this shoreline and rural community soon thereafter was given the name Kenilworth and later Killingworth. In 1735 the First and Second Ecclesiastical Societies were established being the southern and northern portions of the Town respectively. In May 1838, the southern portion was incorporated as a separate town with the name of Clinton after DeWitt Clinton, Governor of New York. Early classes of the Collegiate School, later Yale University, were held here. Citizens prominent in Clinton history: Abraham Pierson - a founder and first rector of the Collegiate School. Jared Eliot - church pastor and noted doctor friend of Benjamin Franklin. Benjamin Gale - pupil of Eliot, gifted physician and agriculturist. Charles Morgan - benefactor of public schools. Horatio G. Wright - Civil War general, chief of army engineers. Erected by the Town of Clinton the Clinton Historical Society and the Connecticut Historical Commission 1971 166 CT towns down, 4 to go

Ever hear of King Philip's War? It was fought between the New England colonists and their Indian…read moreallies against other hostile (and British backed) Indian tribes from 1675-78. New England took on terrible losses (especially in the Massachusetts and Rhode Island colonies) and a dozen of their young towns were destroyed. I read that this War was a leading contributor in the case for an independent American identity, because the colonists were fighting more or less on their own, with no outside support -giving them a "shared identity" as a group different and distinct from the British. Pretty interesting, isn't it? Anyway, this marker taught me that Montville's Mohegan tribe fought on the British side during the war. Located in front of Town Hall is this 2-sided marker from the CT Historical Commission, in the familiar white lettering on a blue background. It has different inscriptions on both sides. The marker is in pretty good condition with side two being in better shape than side one. The colors are brighter on side two with none of the peeling seen on the bottom of side one. The full inscription reads: This area was long the home of the Mohegan Indians, by settlement before the Colonial period, and by reservation until more recent years. Prominent Indian sachems were Owaneco and his father Uncas, who defeated the chief Miantonomoh, a Narragansett, destroying that tribe's will to fight and opening the land to occupation by the whites. Uncas aided the English in King Philip's War of 1675-76, their most difficult and widespread conflict with the Indians. John Mason, about 1723, erected a school to educate and teach Indians the Christian religion. Samson Occum, a student trained at the Reverend Eleazer Wheelock's school in present-day Columbia, taught in New London and became the first ordained Indian minister. He was a missionary to the Indians of New York colony. Visiting England, he raised a sum of $50,000, which was used to found Dartmouth College. Uncas donated lands to English friends in 1658, urging them to settle. Samuel Rogers, the first settler, built a home in 1670 and reared six children, the first white persons born in Montville. Connecticut divided lands to each Indian family in 1790, extending equal rights to all Indians as to whites in 1872. Sarah Huntington and Sarah Breed established a school on Fort Hill about 1827. They raised funds to build the present Mohegan Indian Church in 1831. Nearby are Fort Shantok State Park and Mohegan Indian Burial Ground, the Church, and the Tantaquidgeon Museum, preserving much Indian culture. Erected 1977 by Town of Montville, Montville Historical Society and Connecticut Historical Commission. Four stars for one of the more interesting accounts I've seen on a marker, and for prodding me to go learn something about King Philip's War 159 CT towns done, 11 to go