Marlborough is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It contains the census-designated place (CDP) of Terramuggus. The town's population was 6,404 at the 2010 census.[1] Marlborough is a middle class suburban and rural community. The local high school is RHAM High School. In 2013, Marlborough ranked third (of 24) in Connecticut Magazine's biannual ranking of Connecticut small towns, median home sale price between $175,000 and $224,999.[2] Educationally, RHAM High School, which serves Marlborough, Hebron, and Andover students, was the top-ranked regional high school in the state on the SAT in 2017, and 11th highest-performing school in the state on the test.[3]
The earliest inhabitants of present-day Marlborough, prior to the arrival of the English settlers, were the Podunk people, an indigenous people who spoke an Algonquian language. The beginnings of the town can be traced back to the opening of (John) Sadler's Ordinary, a colonial-era rest stop, in 1648. It was the second such establishment in Connecticut Colony after Hartford. It was a crossroads of sorts during colonial times, and travelers would stop to rest at the heart of what is now Marlborough center at the Buell House (now the Marlborough Tavern). Although the original Sadler's Ordinary (Inn) eventually went out of business, a new Sadler's Ordinary was built in a new location in 1970, and is still in business today.[4]
In 1747, William Buell and Joel Foote petitioned the colonial General Court for permission to form an Ecclesiastical Society and settle what was to become known as the town of Marlborough. In 1749, they began constructing the First Congregational Church which wouldn’t be finished until 1803.[5] Marlborough was incorporated on 13 October 1803 with land from parts of three neighboring towns: Glastonbury, Colchester (New London County) and Hebron (Tolland County).[6][7] The town took its name from Marlborough, Massachusetts.[8]
By 1907 the town had a population of less than 305 residents. It wasn’t until the 1960s that the town was rediscovered as a bedroom community for white collar working in Hartford.[9] A complete town history called Reflections Into Marlborough's History was published in 2007.