26 Historic Places to Visit in Hartford and Tolland Counties

As one of the original 13 American colonies, Connecticut is home to more than 1,500 buildings and districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including nearly 500 in Hartford and Tolland counties alone. Many are now operated as museums, exhibiting the rich history of the region.

Each Patch town in Hartford and Tolland counties is represented on the National Register. This column highlights one per town, with the selected place being the one which has been listed longest on the Register (date of registration is in parentheses).

• Avon: Avon Congregational Church, 6 West Main St. (Nov. 7, 1972)
• Berlin: Ezekiel Kelsey House, 429 Beckley Rd. (Sept. 16, 1977)
• Canton: Collinsville Historic District, Route 179 (June 23, 1976)
• East Granby: Old Newgate Prison, Newgate Rd. (Oct. 15, 1970)
• East Windsor: St. John's Episcopal Church, 92 Main St. (Apr. 27, 1982)
• Ellington: Ellington Center Historic District, Maple St./Main St. area (Nov. 15, 1990)
• Enfield: Enfield Town Meetinghouse, 1294 Enfield St. (Sept. 10, 1974)
• Farmington: Stanley-Whitman House, 37 High St. (Oct. 15, 1966)
• Glastonbury: Gideon Welles House, 37 Hebron Ave. (Oct. 6, 1970)
• Granby: Rowe and Weed Houses, 208 Salmon Brook St. (Jan. 18, 1978)
• Hartford: Mark Twain House, 351 Farmington Ave. (Oct. 15, 1966)
• Manchester: Cheney Brothers Historic District, Hartford Rd. area (June 2, 1978)
• Mansfield: Eleazer Williams House, Storrs Rd. (Mar. 11, 1971)
• Newington: Enoch Kelsey House, 1702 Main St. (June 28, 1982)
• Rocky Hill: Academy Hall, 785 Old Main St. (Oct. 7, 1977)
• Simsbury: Capt. Elisha Phelps House, 800 Hopmeadow St. (Sept. 22, 1972)
• Somers: Somers Historic District, Main St./Springfield Rd. area (Sept. 23, 1982)
• South Windsor: Ebenezer Grant House, 1653 Main St. (Sept. 19, 1977)
• Southington: Horace Webster Farmhouse, 577 South End Rd. (Aug. 24, 1977)
• Suffield: Hatheway House, 55 South Main St. (Aug. 6, 1975)
• Tolland: Tolland County Courthouse, 53 Tolland Green (Sept. 17, 1977)
• Vernon: Florence Mill, 121 West Main St. (July 18, 1978)
• West Hartford: Noah Webster Birthplace, 227 South Main St. (Oct. 15, 1966)
• Wethersfield: Joseph Webb House, 211 Main St. (Oct. 15, 1966)
• Windsor: Oliver Ellsworth Homestead, 778 Palisado Ave. (Oct. 6, 1970)
• Windsor Locks: Windsor Locks Passenger Station, Main St. (Sept. 2, 1975)

Click here for the complete list in Hartford County, and here for Tolland County.

Photo credit: Tim Jensen