Today in 1777, one day after troops under William Tryon destroyed the Continental Army’s supply depot in Danbury, Patriot soldiers and militiamen struck back in the town of Ridgefield. Tryon’s raid on Danbury took local Patriots by surprise. They had assumed the Connecticut town was safe from a British coastal raid. And though regulars…
Tag: danbury
April 26: British Forces Attack, Burn Danbury
During the American Revolution, the western Connecticut town of Danbury served as a critical supply depot for Continental Army troops stationed in New England and the strategically important Hudson River Valley. In early 1777, Royal Governor William Tryon of New York moved to sever the Americans’ Danbury supply line. He did so by launching…
January 31: A Double Dam Disaster Devastates Danbury
In 1860, residents living in Danbury, Connecticut banded together to build a large, earthen dam to create a reservoir that would provide a steady water supply for the town’s steadily-increasing population and burgeoning factories. A few years later, they built a second dam about a mile downriver, and the structures became known as the…
December 28: When Eastern Pennsylvania Belonged to Connecticut
Connecticut stands today as one of the smallest states in the Union in terms of land area. But during the 17th and 18th centuries, ambitious Connecticans dreamed of expanding the colony’s control over vast swaths of territory located far to the west. Connecticut’s Royal Charter of 1662, issued by King Charles II, had originally…
December 18: “The Devil Made Him Do It”
Today in 1981, the sentencing of Arne Cheyenne Johnson in a Danbury courtroom marked the end of one of the most bizarre court cases in Connecticut history. For the first and only time in U.S. history, a defendant on trial for murder argued that he could not be held responsible for his actions because…
December 16: First Connecticut Stretch of Interstate 84 — the “Yankee Expressway” — Opens
By the 1950s, overcrowded highways became an increasingly familiar annoyance to Connecticut commuters as the state basked in post-WWII economic prosperity and the increase in population — and automobile traffic — that came with it. At the time, most of Connecticut’s inland east-west travel utilized U.S. Route 6, an old and overburdened road that…
October 7: Jefferson, Danbury Baptists, and the “Wall of Separation” Between Church and State
One of the central tenets of modern American political doctrine was borne out of a letter exchange between Connecticut Baptists and an American President that began today in Connecticut history. On October 7, 1801, the Danbury Baptists Association sent an eloquent letter to newly elected President Thomas Jefferson expressing their concerns about Connecticut’s backing…
October 4: The State’s Greatest Fair’s Final Run
When it comes to annual autumn fair traditions, Connecticans have plenty of options to choose from. In non-COVID-19 years, there are dozens of local fairs held within the state, not to mention “The Big E” Eastern States Exposition located just over the Massachusetts border in West Springfield. For over 110 years, however, the Danbury Fair…
July 20: Mass-Marriage-Minded Minister of “Moonies” Moves Into Danbury Prison.
Sun Myung Moon, the late 20th century Korean evangelist whose Unification Church once claimed over three million members worldwide, was a figure dogged by controversy throughout his life. Born in occupied North Korea in 1920, Moon developed strong anti-Communist views as an adult and founded the Unification Church in Seoul, South Korea. The church’s…
July 15: Creating Connecticut’s Largest Lake
With an area of 8.4 square miles and over 60 miles of coastline, Candlewood Lake is the largest lake in the state of Connecticut. Located in five towns and straddling both Litchfield and Fairfield counties, its shores are also home to some of the state’s highest-priced real estate. The lake has served as a…
May 15: Hotels’ “Queen of Mean” Checks Into Danbury Prison
Leona Helmsley was one of the most visible celebrity billionaires of late 20th century New York. The wife of hotelier Harry Helmsley, Leona became the face of an immensely successful marketing campaign that cast her as a “queen” who would tolerate only the highest and most exacting standards for the Helmsley-owned luxury-class hotel properties….
May 8: The Man Who Made “Happily Ever After” Get Real
Today in 2012, longtime Connecticut resident Maurice Sendak died in Danbury from complications following a stroke. Sendak was a prolific children’s book creator who wrote and illustrated dozens of books during a more than half-century career. His path-breaking approach to reflecting the psychology of children in his work transformed the field of children’s literature….