Founded in 1851, the Farmington Savings Bank moved into its current Main Office, on Main Street in Farmington, after it was completed in 1927. From 1865 to 1927, it had been located in an old store building that once stood in front of the current building. Before that, the bank had been successively located in the homes of its first two treasurers!
The Dr. Joshua Belden House, constructed in 1722, is located on Main Street in Newington. A center-chimney colonial house, it was updated in the Greek Revival style, with columns and pediment on the facade. Records show that Dr. Belden had two “bound” children, or indentured servants, in his household.
The Union Hotel was built in 1830 on Main Street in Farmington to serve those who were expected to utilize the nearby Farmington Canal. Two years after the canal failed in 1848, the vacant building was rented by Sarah Porter for her new school for girls. It continues as the “Main” building of Miss Porter’s School. (more…)
The 1796 Bissell Tavern, also known as Bissell’s Stage House or the Ebeneezer Fitch Bissell House, is located on Palisado Avenue in Windsor. The Bissell family also ran the ferry nearby across the Connecticut River to East Windsor Hill. The Bissell Tavern Sign is owned by the Windsor Historical Society.
Strongly influenced by many features of the Old State House, the Horace Bushnell Memorial Hall was built in 1930 in the Georgian Revival style. It was constructed in Hartford, near the State Capitol, as a gift to the community from Dotha Bushnell Hillyer in honor of her father, the Rev. Horace Bushnell. The building was designed by the architectural firm of Corbett, Harrison and MacMurray, which also worked on Rockefeller Center. While the exterior reflects Colonial influence, the interior is in the Art Deco style. Today, the expanded Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts remains Hartford’s main venue for concerts and can also serve as a public auditorium.
One of the mansions of the Cheney family of silk manufacturers in Manchester is the house constructed around 1900 for Frank Cheney, Jr. on Hartford Road. A Colonial Revival structure, designed by Charles Adams Platt, it includes such features as a hipped roof, a prominent palladian window and portico with Ionic columns. Purchased in 1958 by the nearby South United Methodist Church, it has been used for various purposes and currently houses the offices of the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce and New Hope Manor.
Miss Sarah Porter, born in 1813, was the daughter of Noah Porter, pastor of First Church in Farmington, 1806-1866. In 1843 she founded the school for girls which is associated with her name. After her death, in 1900, former students of Miss Porter’s School contributed money for the building of the Sarah Porter Memorial House. Dedicated in 1902, it serves First Church, which is located just across the Village Green. The building is also used as a community center, hosting other local groups.
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