Church of the Holy Trinity, Middletown (1874)

The Church of the Holy Trinity in Middletown is an Episcopal church, built of local brownstone and designed in the Gothic Revival style by Henry Dudley. The first Anglican services in Middletown were conducted around 1730 and a parish, called Christ Church, was formally organized in 1750. The first church building was built in 1755 on South Green, followed by the second on Broad Street (now used as Russell Library) in 1834. Martha Mortimer Starr (1777-1848) bequeathed her land on Main Street to the parish on condition that it be renamed Church of the Holy Trinity. The name was changed in 1857 and the current church was built in 1870-1874 at 381 Main Street. Among the rectors of the church was Dr. Edward Campion Acheson, who served from 1892 to 1915 and was later bishop of Connecticut. His son, Dean Acheson, later served as Secretary of State in the administration of Harry S. Truman.

Park Street Congregational Church (1871)

In 1867, Congregational services began to be held in East Bridgeport in the Bethesda Mission Chapel on East Washington Street. A church was formally organized the following year and in 1870-1871, Park Street Congregational Church was built at the corner of Park and Barnum Streets, fronting Washington Park. The Gothic Revival building was designed by architect Abram Skaats. The church‘s membership peaked in the 1930s and 1940s, but declined after World War II. In 1988, Park Street Congregational Church merged with Trinity United Church of Christ of Trumbull to form Unity Hill United Church of Christ, located at 364 White Plains Road in Trumbull. The former Park Street Congregational Church is now Calvary Temple Christian Center.

Holy Advent Episcopal Church (1876)

Before building a church, Anglicans in Clinton meet at the Academy Building for worship. They formed an Episcopal Society in 1873 and constructed Holy Advent Episcopal Church, at 81 East Main Street, in 1876. The first public worship in the church was on the first Sunday of Advent, 1876 and opening services were on April 18, 1877. The building was consecrated on July 8, 1880, after indebtedness for the church had been paid. The church was recently restored (pdf). The exterior, which had been covered with wood shingles and painted brown, was restored to its original board-and-batten siding, painted white.

Sacred Heart Church, New Britain (1904)

Polish immigrants in New Britain first formed a congregation in 1894 as a mission of St. Stanislaus parish in Meriden. The new parish in New Britain was established the following year. Originally named St. Casimir the King, its name was changed in 1896 to the Sacred Heart of Jesus parish. The first church was built on Orange Street in 1896. The current church, at 158 Broad Street, was designed by architect George P. B. Alderman of Holyoke. It was built in 1903-1904.

Lewtan Building (1860)

Today is the Fifth Anniversary of Historic Buildings of Connecticut!

At 28 High Street in Hartford is the Gothic and Romanesque Revival Batterson Block, now called the Lewtan Building. It was closely linked to a much larger Batterson Building, now lost, that stood next door and was later the Garde Hotel. It was built around 1860 by James G. Batterson, who ran a quarrying business called the New England Granite Company. Batterson, who is buried in Cedar Hill Cemetery in Hartford, founded Travelers Insurance Company in 1863.

Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Hartford (1917)

Sacred Heart Catholic Church, at Ely and Winthrop Streets in Hartford, was erected by a congregation of German immigrants who first organized in 1872. The church began with a basement chapel, designed by Michael O’Danahue and completed in 1893. The Gothic structure with yellow brick facade was completed by architect George A. Zunner, Sr. and was dedicated in 1917. Today, the church has a primarily Puerto Rican congregation.

St. Justin Catholic Church (1933)

In 1914, Father Francis P. Nolan built a house in the Blue Hills section of Hartford. In 1924, he was named founding pastor of St. Justin Parish. Fr. Nolan, who had a degree from Yale’s Sheffield Scientific School and had worked as a civil engineer, was much involved in planning the new church with architects Whiton & McMahon. Built in 1931-1933, the church is an Art Deco structure and has Art Deco ornamentation in the interior as well. (more…)