These Are The Youngest Towns In Hartford And Tolland Counties

HARTFORD-TOLLAND COUNTIES, CT — For decades, debate has raged over which Connecticut town is the oldest. We’re not talking the age of the residents, but rather the age of the town itself, as far as official dates of incorporation.

Windsor is recognized in most circles as being the first Connecticut town, settled in late 1633. Signs at the town’s borders proclaim, “Welcome to Windsor - Connecticut’s First Town,” while the words “First in Connecticut” are printed on official town literature.

Residents of Wethersfield, however, have always claimed their town is oldest, and “Most Ancient Town” is displayed on welcome signs in that municipality.

Reading a story about the dispute got me, a true history buff, pondering this thought: what is the most recently incorporated town in the state, and specifically in Hartford and Tolland counties? A quick Google search led me directly to the Secretary of the State’s website, and more information than I could have imagined.

The SOTS site lists all 169 Connecticut towns in order of date of incorporation, as well as interesting facts such as former town names and Indian names. For the record, Windsor is listed as No. 1 and Wethersfield No. 2 on the SOTS site.

A small sampling of these seemingly trivial facts includes:

• Hartford and Tolland counties used to have towns called Great Swamp, Freshwater, Suffrage, Ponde-town, New Cambridge, West Woods, Northington and Wintonbury - they are known today as Ellington, Enfield, Canton, Mansfield, Bristol, Burlington, Avon and Bloomfield.
• Wethersfield was originally settled as Watertown, while Hartford was first called Newtown.
• Somers, Enfield, Suffield and Woodstock used to be part of Massachusetts.
• Greenwich was part of New York until 1656.

Before we get back to just the two northern counties, for the record, the youngest town in Connecticut is West Haven, which was incorporated from Orange in June 1921. It is the only town in the Nutmeg State incorporated during the 20th century.

Okay, here are all 42 incorporated towns in the region, ranked in order from newest to oldest. Facts about each community are included, courtesy of the SOTS site.

1. Newington, parish named 1721, from Newington in Kent or Stoke-N. Middlesex (London), incorporated from Wethersfield, July, 1871.
2. Plainville, named 1831 = earlier name "Great Plain"; incorporated from Farmington, July, 1869.
3. East Granby, named 1822; incorporated from Granby and Windsor Locks, June, 1858.
4. Windsor Locks, named 1833 from canal locks there; incorporated from Windsor, May, 1854. Formerly Enfield Falls.
5. West Hartford, named 1806; incorporated from Hartford, May, 1854. Formerly West Division.
6. New Britain, parish named 1754 from (Great) Britain; incorporated from Berlin, May, 1850.
7. Andover, parish named 1747, perhaps from Andover, Mass.; incorporated from Coventry and Hebron, May, 1848.
8. South Windsor, incorporated and named from East Windsor, May, 1845. Formerly Windsor Farms.
9. Rocky Hill, name given Stepney parish from a hill in it, 1826; incorporated from Wethersfield, May, 1843.
10. Bloomfield, incorporated from Windsor, May, 1835; named from a Hartford family. Formerly Wintonbury.
11. Avon, incorporated from Farmington, May, 1830, and named from Avon river at Stratford-on-Avon. Formerly Northington.
12. Manchester, incorporated from East Hartford, May, 1823, and named from Manchester, England, because of manufacturing. Originally Orford parish.
13. Vernon, incorporated from Bolton, Oct., 1808, and named prob. from the home of Washington at Mount Vernon, Va. Formerly North Bolton.
14. Canton, incorporated from Simsbury, May, 1806, and the name Canton suggested by the late Ephraim Mills, is derived from a likeness to a Swiss canton. Original name, "Suffrage."
15. Burlington, incorporated from Bristol, May, 1806; named (as Burlington, Vt.), prob. from 3d Earl of Burlington. Formerly "West Woods" or "West Britain."
16. Columbia, incorporated from Lebanon, May, 1804, and given the poetic name for the United States.
17. Marlborough, named 1747, from great Duke of Marlborough, or from Marlborough, Mass.; incorporated from Colchester, Glastonbury and Hebron, Oct., 1803. Previously Eastbury and New Marlborough.
18. Granby, incorporated from Simsbury, Oct., 1786, and named from the Marquis of Granby (Chas. Manners), or from Granby, Mass.
19. Ellington, named 1735, from Ellington in Yorks or Hunts; incorporated from E. Windsor, May, 1786. Originally called the "Great Swamp."
20. Bristol, incorporated from Farmington, May, 1785, and named from Bristol, England. Formerly New Cambridge.
21. Berlin, incorporated from Farmington, Middletown and Wethersfield, May, 1785; named from Berlin, Prussia. Formerly Kensington.
22. East Hartford, incorporated from Hartford, Oct., 1783. Indian name, "Podunk."
23. Southington, named Oct., 1726, as south society of Farmington; incorporated from Farmington, Oct., 1779.
24. East Windsor, settled 1680; incorporated from Windsor and named May, 1768. Formerly Windsor.
25. Hartland, named 1733 = Hart(ford) land, because owned by Hartford men; incorporated May, 1761.
26. Union, settled 1727, as "Union Lands"; named 1732; incorporated Oct., 1734 (union of East Stafford and State Lands).
27. Somers, set off from Enfield by Mass., and named from Lord Somers, July, 1734; annexed to Conn., May, 1749. Formerly East Enfield.
28. Willington, named "Wellington," May, 1725, from Wellington in Somersetshire (birthplace of Henry Wolcott, whose grandson Roger was chief purchaser, 1720), which gave title to the Duke of Wellington, but incorporated May, 1727, as "Willington."
29. Bolton, settled 1716; named and incorporated Oct., 1720; named from Bolton in Lancashire, or the Duke of Bolton.
30. Stafford, settled in 1719; named from Stafford, town in Staffordshire.
31. Tolland, named May, 1715; incorporated May, 1722, from Tolland in Somersetshire, whence Henry Wolcott, grandfather of Gov. Roger Wolcott, chief owner.
32. Coventry, settled 1709; named from Coventry in Warwickshire, Oct., 1711; incorporated May, 1712.
33. Hebron, settled 1704; named 1707 from Heb. Hebron (derivation doubtful); "An association," "a league," and "confederacy," are meanings given this word by various authorities; incorporated May, 1708.
34. Mansfield, settled 1686; set off from Windham and incorporated Oct., 1702; named from Major Moses Mansfield. Originally called Ponde-town. Indian name, "Noubesetuck."
35. Glastonbury, incorporated May, 1693; set off from Wethersfield, June, 1692; named from Glastonbury in Somersetshire.
36. Enfield, grant of township "called Enfield" by Mass., May, 1683, from Enfield in Middlesex; annexed to Conn., May, 1749. Formerly Freshwater.
37. Suffield, "abbreviation of Southfield," established in Mass., 1674; annexed to Conn., May 1749.
38. Simsbury, settled and named May, 1670, from Sim (on) Wolcott, leading settler, or from Simondsbury in Dorset.
39. Farmington, settled in 1640; incorporated and named, Dec. 1645. "Tunxis shall be called Farmington" = farming town.
40. Hartford, Dutch trading house, "House of Hope," 1633; settled as Newtown in 1635; named 1637 from Hertford in Hertfordshire, Indian name, "Suckiag."
41. Wethersfield, settled as Watertown 1634; named 1637 from Wethersfield in Essex, England. Indian name, "Pyquag."
42. Windsor, settled by a company from Plymouth Colony, arriving with the frame and materials of a trading house on their vessel Sept. 26, 1633. This house was set up, 80 to 100 rods below the mouth of the Farmington River, on a tract previously bought of the original Indian proprietors. Before the summer of 1635, the settlers had bought Great Meadow, north of the Farmington, and placed cattle and servants on their lands. They sold out, 1637 and 1638, to Dorchester, Mass., settlers, who had arrived in their vicinity, 1635, and named their settlement Dorchester. It was named in 1637 from Windsor in Berkshire, now a royal residence.