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Barbara Austen and Barbara Bryan compiled this set of images to bring Fairfield's past into focus, helping us to envision more clearly the bright future of the area.

In the fall of 1639, Roger Ludlow, a founder of the colony of Connecticut, led a small group of men and a large herd of cattle to the shore of Long Island Sound, where they established a settlement that became known as Fairfield. With this exciting new photographic history, the members of the Fairfield Historical Society have created a unique look back in time. More than 200 rare photographs in this book document the dramatic changes that have occurred in Fairfield's landscape and population during the last 130 years of its 350-year history. Agriculture dominated Fairfield's economy from its founding to the mid-nineteenth century. With the rise of neighboring Bridgeport as an industrial center in the 1860s to 1920s, laborers and business owners moved to Fairfield, and the once-rural landscape was transformed into suburban home lots. Today the town's population is a vibrant mix of commuters, local business people, and young families.

On August 22, 1914, Milford, Connecticut, celebrated its 275th anniversary. An estimated crowd of 20,000 celebrated on the Milford Green alongside open-air horseless buggies.

The celebration started at sunrise with a cannon salute and the sounding of church bells and factory whistles. Milford just recently celebrated its 375th anniversary.

This wonderful visual history weaves together more than two hundred images with intriguing and informative text to create an immensely enjoyable journey through the history of the northern Litchfield Hills.

The Litchfield Hills Region, situated in the northwestern corner of Connecticut, is known for its picture-perfect rolling hills, its traditional farms, and its charming villages. There is a sense of peacefulness and pride here, and yet this idyllic appearance belies a long and fascinating history dating back to the very first years of settlement in America. The Litchfield Hills Region has been home to such legendary figures as Harriet Beecher Stowe, Ethan Allen, and Oliver Wolcott, and in this book the contributions of these historic figures are celebrated alongside those of the ordinary folk of Torrington, Winsted, Litchfield, Kent, Sharon, Lakeville, Salisbury, Cornwall, Canaan, Canton, Collinsville, New Hartford, Riverton-Barkhamsted, Colebrook, and Morris.

Old Lyme, Lyme, and Hadlyme is a compelling tribute to an area that is extraordinary in many ways.

Where the Connecticut River empties into Long Island Sound, a community that eventually became known as Lyme was settled in 1639. The community ran up the eastern riverbank to what is now East Haddam, along the Sound to Niantic, and into parts of Salem. In time, Lyme was divided into small towns and villages: Old Lyme, Lyme, Hadlyme, Hamburg, Sterling City, South Lyme, and the coastal communities. The area is notable due to its people, many of whom were attorneys, judges, legislators, and governors; for its commerce, which brought ships from up and down the East Coast and as far away as the West Indies; and for its beautiful homes, some of which survive today thanks to a strong preservation ethic.

Connecticut Yankees at Antietam honors the brave soldiers who fought in the single bloodiest battle of the Civil War.

September 17, 1862--The Battle of Antietam was the single bloodiest day of the Civil War. In the intense conflict and its aftermath across the farm fields and woodlots near the village of Sharpsburg, Maryland, more than two hundred men from Connecticut died. Their grave sites are scattered throughout the Nutmeg State, from Willington to Madison and Brooklyn to Bristol. Author John Banks chronicles their mostly forgotten stories using diaries, pension records and soldiers' letters. Learn of Henry Adams, a twenty-two-year-old private from East Windsor who lay incapacitated in the cornfield for nearly two days before he was found; Private Horace Lay of Hartford, who died with his wife by his side in a small church that served as a hospital after the battle; and Captain Frederick Barber of Manchester, who survived a field operation only to die days later. Discover the stories of these and many more brave Yankees who fought in the fields of Antietam.

A charming collection of Bridgeport stories and historic images bring this eccentric, enchanting history to life.

In the late nineteenth century, P.T. Barnum was known worldwide for his traveling circus, but to the city of Bridgeport he meant much more. The city's mayor and benefactor, Barnum was also a mastermind at urban planning. Thus, amid Bridgeport's growing industrial factories, orchestras played from the bandstand at Seaside Park and bucolic hills surrounded Bunnell's Pond. In this collection of narratives, Eric D. Lehman captures the city's natural beauty and richly eccentric history. From the brave women of the Black Rock Lighthouse to war heroes of 'the nation's arsenal', from 'the tiniest general', Tom Thumb, to the tragic death of Jumbo the elephant, these are the best stories from Connecticut's 'Park City.'

While Mohawk Mountain is known as a small, family-friendly ski area, many are unaware of the large impact this mountain had on the sport. Its founder, Walt Schoenknecht, changed the face of modern skiing when he helped create the first snowmaking machine in 1950. That “artificial snow” machine, first tested at Mohawk, received the first U.S. patent for such a device. Today, Mohawk is one of the few surviving family-owned ski areas in the United States, and Schoenknecht's daughter, Carol Lugar, remains its president. Mohawk has had to survive a devastating tornado, challenging weather and economic headwinds to compete with larger corporate-owned ski resorts. Today, the small mountain in Cornwall, Connecticut remains a favorite, with new lifts, expanded snowmaking, more ski school lessons, snowtubing and night skiing. Local author James Shay reveals the unique contributions of Mohawk and Walt Schoenknecht to the sport of skiing.

Despite the name, there is nothing mystical about the successes of the town of Mystic.

Mystic was one of the most active shipbuilding ports along New England's southern coast during the mid-19th century, renowned for building more than 600 ships a year. By the end of the age of sail, Mystic made a successful transition to a new economy based on textile and machine manufacturing, maritime engineer, and small craft building. These industries carried the village into the 20th century, and today, Mystic is a world-class tourist destination, a community that is both divided and unified by the Mystic River. The history of Mystic mirrors the history of many coastal New England towns, but the images here are unique to this southeastern Connecticut region, recognizable to both residents and visitors alike.

When early photographers began recording scenes around Simsbury, the town was over 200 years old and changing with the times.

Photographs taken in 1885 during a mile-high balloon ride trace railroads, rather than the old canal, running through the town. Grand Victorian mansions, some of them summer residences, arose among cherished family homes on farms dating from colonial times. The mills in the Tariffville section and Toy, Bickford & Company near the center of town provided housing for workers who arrived from Europe. Townspeople sent their youngest children to one of 12 district schools. By 1917, the town could boast of a centrally located public high school as well as two private boarding schools. In Simsbury, images capture the mix of old and new until the advent of World War II.

Halfway between Boston and New York is a little town now called Clinton, located in Connecticut, whose history includes Dr. Seuss, Yale College and the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.

The small shoreline town 25 miles east of New Haven was founded in 1663 when a committee appointed by the General Court at Hartford laid out a settlement called the Homonoscitt Plantation. In 1838, following multiple name changes during the intervening years, it came to be known as Clinton. Clinton was the birthplace of Yale College in 1701; the hometown of choice for a family and their performing bears, who, for years, headlined with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey; and the place where Dr. Seuss spent his summers.

In over 200 rare, historical images, the story of one outstanding naval submarine base comes to life.

The first U.S. naval submarine base traces its origin to 1868, when the state of Connecticut and the city of New London granted the navy one hundred twelve acres of land across the Thames River in Groton. Naval Submarine Base NewLondon shows how this land developed from a depot for dry-docked ships and a coaling stationfor navy warships to its present designation as a submarine base. Nearly two hundred images depict the sailors and civilian workers who together maintained, serviced, and staffed the submarines, shops, and offices in support of the growing submarine fleet.

Wallingford depicts the interesting history of this Connecticut community.

Wallingford lies nestled among the hills along the valley of the Quinnipiac River in Connecticut. Its first settlers were 38 planters and their families, who arrived in 1670. The land proved to be productive for farming and orchards. Many years after its founding, Wallingford flourished as a center for the making of silver holloware and flatware. With names such as Wallace, Simpson, Rogers, Elton, Hall, Miller, International Silver, the Community (a commune, which later joined the Oneida, New York community), and later Boardman, Wallingford became known throughout the country. Unique areas of Wallingford such as Yalesville, Tracy, Pond Hill, North Farms, and Cook Hill sprang up, taking on the names of the people who started businesses and farms there. Today, although most of the farms and the silver industry have disappeared, Wallingford still has a thriving industry and rural expanses. Revering its heritage, the community has worked hard to achieve this balance as it has gone forward to meet the challenges of the present and future.

In vivid historical images, step into Norwalk's past and discover a new part of Long Island history

Located on the shores of Long Island Sound, Norwalk's close proximity to New York City prompted the building of many summer residences and guest cottages along its coast. In the summer, steamships and trolleys arrived with passengers looking to enjoy the local amusement park, Roton Point. Norwalk's earliest industries included farming as well as mills powered by its rivers. The area has been famous for its pottery, oystering, and hat manufacturing. Over time, this community has endured disasters; it was burned during the American Revolution, and the flood of 1955 wiped out much of the Wall Street area as well as several bridges on the Norwalk River. Norwalk shares vintage images from the mid-1800s through the 1960s, highlighting memorable sites such as Old MacDonald's Farm and the Melton Automobile Museum. The revitalization of Norwalk's downtown areas proves it is possible to respect the past and those that came before through the renewal of historical architecture.