Windsor: Connecticut's Oldest Town and the Tobacco Flats
Windsor holds the distinction of being the oldest town in Connecticut, with its founding date established at 1633 when settlers from the Plymouth Colony arrived at the confluence of the Farmington and Connecticut rivers. The town predates Hartford by three years. The Palisado Green, a narrow town green lined with colonial-era houses, stands at the site of the original fortified settlement. Several structures along Palisado Avenue date to the early 1700s, and the Oliver Ellsworth Homestead, home of the third Chief Justice of the United States, is a museum open to visitors.
Tobacco farming shaped Windsor's landscape for centuries. Broadleaf tobacco grown in the Connecticut River valley was prized as cigar wrapper, and the distinctive long, narrow shade-tobacco barns that dot the valley were designed to air-cure the leaves. While production has diminished considerably, some farms still grow shade tobacco in Windsor and the adjacent towns. The flat, alluvial farmland along the river remains visible even as residential and commercial development has filled in much of the surrounding area.
Modern Windsor is a Hartford suburb of approximately 28,778 people. Interstate 91 passes through the eastern part of town, and Bradley International Airport in neighboring Windsor Locks is about ten miles north. The town's commercial development is concentrated along Route 75 (Poquonock Avenue) and near the highway interchanges. The Northwest Park and Nature Center, a 473-acre preserve, provides trails, farm exhibits, and educational programs.
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Windsor holds the distinction of being the oldest town in Connecticut, with its founding date established at 1633 when settlers from the Plymouth Colony arrived at the confluence of the Farmington and Connecticut rivers. The town predates Hartford by three years. The Palisado Green, a narrow town green lined with colonial-era houses, stands at the site of the original fortified settlement. Several structures along Palisado Avenue date to the early 1700s, and the Oliver Ellsworth Homestead, home of the third Chief Justice of the United States, is a museum open to visitors.
Tobacco farming shaped Windsor's landscape for centuries. Broadleaf tobacco grown in the Connecticut River valley was prized as cigar wrapper, and the distinctive long, narrow shade-tobacco barns that dot the valley were designed to air-cure the leaves. While production has diminished considerably, some farms still grow shade tobacco in Windsor and the adjacent towns. The flat, alluvial farmland along the river remains visible even as residential and commercial development has filled in much of the surrounding area.
Modern Windsor is a Hartford suburb of approximately 28,778 people. Interstate 91 passes through the eastern part of town, and Bradley International Airport in neighboring Windsor Locks is about ten miles north. The town's commercial development is concentrated along Route 75 (Poquonock Avenue) and near the highway interchanges. The Northwest Park and Nature Center, a 473-acre preserve, provides trails, farm exhibits, and educational programs.
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