East Windsor Academy (1817)

The East Windsor Historical Society is headquartered in the brick East Windsor Academy, also known as the Scantic Academy (pdf), which was built in 1817 by the Academy Company, a group of stockholders. It originally had a cupola containing a school bell. The first floor served as a school until 1938, except for an period between 1871 and 1896, when it was owned by the First Congregational Church and used for various meetings. It was then used as a dwelling for a number of years and was converted into two apartments for teachers in the area in 1946 by L. Ellsworth Stoughton. He later donated, first, the upper floor for a museum in 1968 and then the entire building in his will to the Society.

Old Academy, Fairfield (1804)

Fairfield’s Old Academy was a school founded in 1802 by a group of prominent local citizens. The schoolhouse itself was erected on the Old Post Road in Fairfield and opened in 1804. The original academy was in existence until around 1884. The building then served several purposes over the years, being used by a nearby private school and as a library and place for meetings. In 1920, the Old Academy was faced with demolition but the Eunice Dennie Burr Chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Fairfield Historical Society joined to save and restore the building, which was moved to the town green in 1958. Today the Old Academy is owned by the town and still used by the DAR. Opened to visitors several days a year, the building contains historical artifacts and the second floor is maintained as a replica of the old schoolroom.

Old Middletown High School (1894)

The old Middletown High School was built in 1894-1896 on the southwest corner of Court and Pearl Streets. The Romanesque Revival-style building was designed by the Hartford architectural firm of Curtis and Johnson. Additional wings were added in 1912 and 1931. The 1912 addition matches well with the original structure, but the 1931 addition stands out more as a newer separate construction. The building served as a school until 1972, when a new high school was built. In 1979, the old school was sold to a developer and converted into apartments for elderly housing.

Little Boston School (1805)

The Little Boston School in East Lyme was first established in 1734. There is a surviving Little Boston School House that was built around 1805 and originally stood on the north side of West Main Street. The school was run by the Second Ecclesiastical Society of Lyme until 1856 and from then until 1922 by the Town of East Lyme. After closing as a school, the building was donated to the East Lyme Historical Society in 1926 and moved to a new location, adjacent to the Thomas Lee House. Restored to an early twentieth-century appearance in 1973, the school house is now a museum.

Cooley School (1870)

The Cooley School is a one-room schoolhouse built around 1870. It was originally located on the corner of East Street and Cooley Road in North Granby. At that time, the school’s outhouse was just across the state line in Southwick, Massachusetts. The school was closed in 1948 and the furniture was auctioned off. In 1972, the school was given to the Salmon Brook Historical Society by Merrill Clark, whose mother had once taught at the school. Since 1980, the school, now a museum, has been been located with the Historical Society’s other buildings on Salmon Brook Street.

Brick Academy, Torrington (1835)

The Brick Academy in Torrington is an old school building, constructed around 1835. It was probably moved at some point to its current location on George Street, if it is the same Brick Academy as described in the History of Torrington (1878), by Rev. Samuel Orcutt. According to that book, the Brick Academy, “a three story building in Wolcottville south of the bridge on Main street, was built as a Union meeting house and academy, and was used for both purposes quite a number of years. It has been occupied as a manufactory, a store, and a Masonic Hall.” Today the building is a private home.