History and Interactive Maps
History of Windsor
Adapted by Mick Duffek from the Town of Windsor Historic Survey, 1981
Settled in 1633, Windsor holds the title as the first English settlement in Connecticut. During the Revolutionary War, Windsor was a farming community, and the settlers provided provisions (wheat, blankets, pork, guns) to the soldiers in the Continental Army. Due to its location on the Farmington River, early settlers in Windsor built and operated various mills, which lasted as late as 1960. Brickmaking was also a major business until the 1960's, and Windsor bricks were noted for their very high quality. Tobacco farming existed in Windsor as early as 1640, and continues today thanks to successful experiments with shade (covered) tobacco done by Windsor farmers in the 1920's.
In the Beginning
In the early 1600's Dutch settlers had established a colony in America in what is now New York City, while the English settled in eastern Massachusetts, notably Plymouth and Boston. In 1627, the Dutch and the English tried to join together to settle the unoccupied area between them, which we now know as Connecticut. However, each was suspicious of the other, and the idea was abandoned.
First Colonists
In 1633, Dutch colonists traveled up from New York and purchased land from the Connecticut River Indian Tribes in what is now Hartford. At the same time, the Tribes had been trying to convince the English to settle in this area, in the hopes that the English would provide protection to them from their more powerful neighbors, the Pequots. Lured by the River Indians' description of the land, and fearing that the Dutch might claim the entire area, Governor Winslow of Plymouth soon decided to establish an English settlement in Connecticut. He sent a ship that sailed down from Plymouth to the mouth of the Connecticut River, and then up the river to land at the area now occupied by the Loomis Chaffee School, at the mouth of the Farmington River. This area was called Matianuck by the English Plymouth settlers, since it was in the domain of the Matianuck Indian Tribe. The settlers quickly built a trading post, and surrounded it by a tall wooden fence known as a palisado. When the Dutch governor of New York found out about the Plymouth settlement, he sent an expedition of men to try to drive them out, but the English held on to their post.
Expansion and Subdivision of Land
In order to expand their settlement, the Plymouth settlers bought more land from the Indians. The first area of land bought was on the west side of the Connecticut River between Hartford and the mouth of the Farmington River. The second continued north up the Connecticut River through the area known as Hayden Station, and the third area extended east from the River indefinitely. Later, more areas were purchased or granted until the total area of Windsor was 250 square miles, and stretched from Litchfield and Torrington in the west to Enfield in the east. In the late 17th century, the area began to subdivide into smaller towns, until 1854, when Windsor Locks was created, and the area now known as Windsor (about 30 square miles) took its final shape.
More Settlers and a New Name
Windsor was an attractive area to other English settlers, and in 1636, a large group from Dorchester, Massachusetts came to settle in Windsor. After some hostility between them and the earlier Plymouth settlers, a large area of land was bought by the Dorchester settlers, which they named Dorchester. This area was concentrated north of the Plymouth settlement, in what is now the Palisado Green area. However, a third group of settlers arrived from England shortly afterward and tried to settle there also. This group, known as the Lords and Gentlemen, was not as large as the Dorchester group, and eventually settled further to the north, in what is now known as Hayden Station. Dorchester was officially renamed Windsor in 1637, and the other two groups adopted the same name in 1639.
