Historic Buildings of Connecticut

Over the last few years I’ve made a number of videos about the history of Hartford’s riverfront area and I’ve now combined them into a single compilation video. The section of the now lost Commerce Street, between State Street and Morgan Street, was the center of the old West Indies trade in the early nineteenth century, back in the days when some of the city’s wealthiest citizens lived nearby. Some of the old buildings connected to this era stood until the Connecticut Valley railroad tracks were built along the riverside in the early 1870s. Much of what was left was lost when the Bulkeley Bridge was erected at the start of the twentieth century. At that time, a new Connecticut Boulevard was constructed that wiped out much that had existed adjacent to the river at the foots of State, Ferry and Morgan Streets. New buildings that were erected at that time, as well as structures associated with the city’s role in the tobacco boom of that era (and Connecticut Boulevard itself) were then lost when the interstate highways came through.

I cover all of this in these videos, as well as the history of Dutch Point, the lost peninsula that once existed where the Park River (now buried in an underground conduit) met the Connecticut River. Named for the old Dutch fort that stood nearby in the 1600s, Dutch Point was a center of shipbuilding and recieved lumber from the great log drives down the Connecticut River. It was later the site of the now lost Dutch Point power plant.

If you’ve seen some (or all!) of these videos, I hope you enjoy revisiting this amazing story and finding them now conviniently in a single place (in a video that’s over 2 hours long!). If you missed any of them, I encourage you to check them out (and don’t forget to leave a comment)!

My latest YouTube video is about the history of the block on the east side of Trumbull Street, between Pratt and Church Streets, a the south side of Church Street around the corner. Things that once existed here include a lost mansion that was home to prominent Connecticut politicians, another notable citizen’s plumbing business, the temporary G. Fox & Co. store that was built in the aftermath of the great 1917 fire, a building where the owner’s brother fell to his death, and many Jewish-owned businesses, including a long-lived tailoring supply store (D. & R. Blutstein), a notable furrier (S. Max & Co.) and the bar and grill owned by legendary boxer Louis “Kid” Kaplan.

My latest video is about the block on the west side of Main Street from Trumbull Street to Ann Uccello Street. The section from Trumbull Street to Pleasant Street that’s being redeveloped was once home to many lost structures, including the one that was called the “Butt Ugly Building.” Other lost landmarks in the vicinity included an infamous hotel and a movie theater. More historic buildings survive in the section from Pleasant Street to High Street, including several “Perfect Sixes” and the Flatiron Building.

Check out my latest video: The section of Trumbull Street in Hartford, Connecticut, between Church Street and Main Street had its buildings demolished for mid-century redevelopment, first when Interstate 84 was built through the city, and then when a hotel and parking garage were erected just south of the highway. There were once four old hotels along this stretch of Trumbull street, as well as other landmarks of Hartford history that were lost.