Picture Ellington - Then And Now

ELLINGTON, CT — For today's trip into Ellington history, highlighting businesses from the town's past and what those locations look like today, we return to a fascinating picture book entitled Images of America: Ellington. The book, compiled by Lynn Kloter Fahy for the Ellington Historical Society, was first published in 2005, and contains 128 pages of amazing photos and stories of the small town formerly known as "the Great Marsh."

This house built in 1812 is located at 70 Main Street in the center of town. The photo was taken between 1906, when the trolley tracks running in front were installed for a route to Rockville, and 1914, when the third building of the Ellington Congregational Church, at right, burned down.

Howard McKnight purchased the 8-room, Federalist-style house in 1922. His daughter, Nellie McKnight, became a teacher, librarian and historian, and eventually took ownership of the property.

When Nellie McKnight passed away in 1981, she left the home and its furnishings to the Ellington Historical Society, who converted it to a museum. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the museum is closed until April 2021. Society members are busy planning events and improvements to the property.

Here is a contemporary look at the house and church, courtesy of Google Maps.

Do you have a photo of an old Ellington business which no longer exists, to which you own the copyright and which we could feature in this column? Email tim.jensen@patch.com.

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