Follow the Old Connecticut Path along the route walked to school by the Chism brothers in the 1860s and 1870s. The recollections of the Chism brothers identify the story of places along the path passed down through oral history of their family. This video follows their route to school with stops along the way to view the places the Chism brothers remember from their childhood. The route of the Old Connecticut Path leads back in time to offer glimpses of the deep wilderness through which the earliest travelers including Thomas Hooker and his congregation traveled.
Select picture or link to view the video on YouTube: http://youtu.be/vRVt5439ldU
The Old Connecticut Path is one of the earliest trails followed as part of America’s westward migration. As early as 1635-36, the migration from Massachusetts Bay at Boston/Cambridge west to Connecticut began following the Old Connecticut Path. Reverend Thomas Hooker and his entire congregation walked along the Old Connecticut Path for two weeks across the wilderness in 1636 from Cambridge, MA to establish Hartford, CT. Join me for a walk and use your imagination to experience the landscape traveled by the pioneers of the 1600s.
Click on the link below to see an excerpt from Harral Ayres The Great Trail.
To see the map drawn by David Chism, click on the link Chism Map
Click on the link below to see the Eastford Historical Society Quarterly, September 2011.
Read Dagmar Noll's articles on the Old Connecticut Path in Eastford, CT.
USGS topographic maps showing the route of the Old Connecticut Path across Eastford and Ashford may be viewed in the Maps section.
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LINKS
Ashford, CT - Babcock Library
BACK TO 2.001 Guide to Crossing the Last Green Valley: West Sutton, MA to Tolland, CT