Willington Train Depot (1894)

In 1850, the New London, Willimantic and Palmer Railroad Company erected a train depot near what is now 14 Tolland Turnpike in Willington. The rail line became part of the Central Vermont Railway in 1871. The original depot burned down in 1894 and was replaced that same year by a new train station/freight depot building. The station/depot was originally called the Tolland Station, because nearby Tolland was the county seat. It was later renamed the Tolland & Willington Station, and then the West Willington Station. By 1947 the station had closed and was then used by the Ruby Lumber Company until it was renovated to become a branch of the Savings Bank of Tolland in 1976. The bank moved to a new location at Phelps Way in Willington in 1988 and took with it a collection of train memorabilia, donated over the years by local residents. In 2016, by which time it was a branch of First Niagara (it’s now KeyBank), the bank donated the collection of 22 objects to the Willington Historical Society.

Former Nichols Store (1874)

Although it is now used as a diner, the building at 12 Tolland Turnpike in Willington, next to the old railroad depot, was built as a store. The first store in West Willington opened in 1837. The business was acquired by John Carpenter in 1874, when the current building was erected. In 1888, Charles Nichols bought it, moved the building to its current location and added a grain room. Hans Hansen acquired the business in 1902 and added a post office section in 1936. By the time of his death in 1939, Hansen’s Grain and Grocery Store was being run by his daughter, Ester (1913-2014), and her husband, Floyd W. Phelps. It was renovated in 1957 to become Phelps Market, which later moved to Phelps Crossing nearby.

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Glass Factory School (1854)

Glass Factory District School, Willington

The Willington Glass Company, founded in 1814, gave its name to the Glass Factory School District in the Town of Willington. The district was served by a one-room schoolhouse, located at the modern address of 18 Glass Factory School Road. According to page 107 of the book A Glimpse of Willington’s Past by Isabel B. Weigold, published by the Willington Historical Society in 1991, the school was erected in 1858. A sign on the building gives a date of 1854. It replaced an earlier school on the site, dating back perhaps to 1727. After the school districts were consolidated, Albert Benjamin bought the house and converted it into a residence in 1936.