History of Litchfield County, Connecticut
The province of the historian is to gather the threads of the past ere they elude forever his grasp, and weave them into a harmonious web, to which the " art preservative" may give immortality; therefore he who would rescue from oblivion the deeds of a community, and send them on to futurity in an imperishable record, should deliver " a plain, unvarnished tale," —
"Nothing extenuate, Nor aught set down in malice."
In such a spirit have the compilers of the following pages approached the work of detailing the history of the county embodied herein, and trust they have been fairly faithful to the task imposed.
It has been our honest endeavor to trace the history of the development of this section from that period when it was in the undisputed possession of the red men to the present, and to place before the reader an authentic narrative of its rise and progress to the prominent position it now occupies among the counties of New England.
That such an undertaking is attended with no little difficulty and vexation none will deny; the aged pioneer relates events of the early settlements, while his neighbor sketches the same events with totally different outlines. Man's memory is ever at fault, while Time paints a different picture upon every mind. With these the historian has to contend; and while it has been our aim to compile an accurate history, were it devoid of all inaccuracies that perfection would have been attained of which the writers had not the faintest conception, and which Lord Macaulay once said never could be reached.
From colonial and other documents in the State archives, from county, town, and village records, family manuscripts, printed publications, and innumerable private sources of information, we have endeavored to produce a history which should prove accurate, instructive, and in every respect worthy of the county represented. How well we have succeeded in our task a generous public, jealous of its reputation and honor, of its traditions and triumphs, must now be the judge.
We desire to acknowledge our sincere thanks to the editorial fraternity generally for much valuable information, which has greatly lessened our labor in the preparation of this work, and also to each and every one who has assisted in its compilation, and would cheerfully make personal mention of each, but it is impracticable, as the number reaches over a thousand.
Table of Contents
CHAPTER I.
Geographical and Descriptive 13
CHAPTER II.
Bench and Bae 14
CHAPTER III.
Medical History 48
CHAPTER IV.
Military History 60
CHAPTER V.
Military History (Continued) 63
CHAPTER VI.
Military History (Continued) 98
CHAPTER VII.
Internal Improvements 100
CHAPTER VIII.
Population and School Statistics 104
CHAPTER IX.
Litchfield 105
CHAPTER X.
Litchfield (Continued) 110
CHAPTER XI.
Litchfield (Continued) 120
CHAPTER XII.
Litchfield (Continued) 129
CHAPTER XIII
Litchfield (Continued) 137
CHAPTER XIV.
Litchfield (Continued) 152
CHAPTER XV.
Winchester 167
CHAPTER XVI.
Winchester (Continued) 186
CHAPTER XVII.
Winchester (Continued) 198
CHAPTER XVIII.
Winchester (Continued) 206
CHAPTER XIX.
Winchester (Continued) 216
CHAPTER XX.
Barkhamsted 237
CHAPTER XXI.
Barkhamsted (Continued) 239
CHAPTER XXII.
Barkhamsted (Continued) 243
CHAPTER XXIII.
Barkhamsted (Continued) 246
CHAPTER XXIV.
Barkhamsted (Continued) 249
CHAPTER XXV.
Bethlehem 251
CHAPTER XXVI.
Bridgewater 265
CHAPTER XXVII.
Canaan 264
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Canaan (Continued) 267
CHAPTER XXIX.
Colebrook 274
CHAPTER XXX.
Cornwall 287
CHAPTER XXXI.
Cornwall (Continued) 300
CHAPTER XXXII.
Goshen 22
CHAPTER XXXIII.
Goshen (Continued) 333
CHAPTER XXXIV.
Goshen (Continued). — Ecclesiastical, Civil, and Military 346
CHAPTER XXXV.
Harwinton 374
CHAPTER XXXVI.
Harwinton (Continued) 379
CHAPTER XXXVII.
Kent 384
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
Morris 388
CHAPTER XXXIX.
New Hartford 393
CHAPTER XL.
New Milford 422
CHAPTER XLI.
New Milford (Continued) 426
CHAPTER XLII.
New Milford (Continued) 438
CHAPTER XLIII.
New Milford (Continued) 445
CHAPTER XLTV.
New Milford (Continued) 451
CHAPTER XLV.
New Milford (Continued) 455
CHAPTER XLVI.
Norfolk 468
CHAPTER XLVII.
North Canaan 482
CHAPTER XLVIII.
Plymouth 486
CHAPTER XLIX.
Plymouth (Continued) 492
CHAPTER L.
Plymouth (Continued) 500
CHAPTER LI.
Roxbury 512
CHAPTER LII.
Salisbury 518
CHAPTER LIII.
Salisbury (Continued) 533
CHAPTER LIV.
Salisbury (Continued) 541
CHAPTER LV.
Salisbury (Continued). — Civil And Military 547
CHAPTER LVI.
Sharon 563
CHAPTER LVII.
Sharon (Continued) 583
CHAPTER LVIII.
Thomaston 599
CHAPTER LIX.
Torrington 610
CHAPTER LX.
Torrington (Continued) 620
CHAPTER LXI.
Torrington (Continued) 626
CHAPTER LXII.
Torrington (Continued) 634
CHAPTER LXIII.
Torrington (Continued) 637
CHAPTER LXIV.
Warren 641
CHAPTER LXV.
Washington 651
CHAPTER LXVI.
Watertown 660
CHAPTER LXVII.
Watertown (Continued) 670
CHAPTER LXVIII.
Watertown (Continued) 672
CHAPTER LXIX.
Woodbury 685
CHAPTER LXX.
Woodbury (Continued) 687
CHAPTER LXXI.
Woodbury (Continued) 691
CHAPTER LXXII.
Woodbury (Continued) 693
CHAPTER LXXIII.
Woodbury (Continued) 695
CHAPTER LXXIV.
Woodbury (Continued) 697
CHAPTER LXXV.
WoODBUKY (Continued) 700
CHAPTER LXXV I.
Woodbury (Continued) 705
Supplement 723
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Litchfield County lies in the extreme northwestern portion of the State of Connecticut, and is bounded as follows: On the north by Massachusetts, on the east by Hartford and New Haven Counties, on the south by New Haven and Fairfield Counties, and on the west by the counties of Dutchess and Columbia, in New York. It comprises about eight hundred and eighty-five square miles of territory, and is the largest county in area in the State.
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