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Bridgewater, Connecticut: The Last Dry Town on the Housatonic

Bridgewater, Connecticut

Pictures from Bridgewater

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Bridgewater town center Bridgewater Village Store Lake Lillinonah

Bridgewater's land was surveyed in 1722 by New Milford proprietor Samuel Clark as "Shepaug Neck," the southern section of New Milford, with early inhabitants including Joseph Treat, grandson of colonial governor Robert Treat. Residents won ecclesiastical independence from New Milford in 1803, and the Congregational Church meetinghouse still standing today was erected in 1807, but Bridgewater didn't incorporate as its own town until 1856. Hat manufacturing under Glover Sanford and Sons defined the local economy from 1823 to 1870 — the road name "Hat Shop Hill" survives — as the town shifted from sheep raising and tobacco toward dairy farming. Around the turn of the century, Charles B. Thompson built a mail-order toiletries factory at what is now 27 Main Street South; at its peak, more mail shipped out of Bridgewater in a single day than out of New York City. Bridgewater remained one of Connecticut's last dry towns until a 2014 referendum passed 660-246.

  1. 1,850 acres and 18-plus miles of trails through the Housatonic Valley.

  2. Lake Lillinonah access with a boat launch and picnic area.

  3. A Greek Revival library endowed by a Bridgewater shipping captain.

  4. Town history museum in Captain Burnham's boyhood home.

  5. An August fair run by the town's volunteer fire department.

  6. The town's one confirmed sit-down restaurant, since 2016.

A dry town's general store

The building at 27 Main Street South has cycled through a century of Bridgewater commerce: Charles Thompson's mail-order factory around 1899, Pete's Emporium from 1927, a Bridgewater IGA store from 1937, and the Gowans' Village Store from 1954. Leni and Peter May bought it in 1989 and, after the town's 2014 vote ended its dry-town status, reopened it in 2016 with the Bridgewater Bistro attached. The Bridgewater Center Historic District, roughly along Main Street, Warner Road, Clapboard Road and Hat Shop Hill, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 19, 2000.

Getting there

Bridgewater has no train station, bus service or highway of its own. Route 133 runs north from US Route 202 in Brookfield, crossing Lake Lillinonah on the Southville Bridge into town, while Route 67 crosses the northern end of Bridgewater east-west, linking New Milford and Southbury. The nearest passenger rail is Metro-North's Danbury Branch, whose northern terminus at Danbury connects south to the New Haven Line at South Norwalk.

A preserve and a lake

Sunny Valley Preserve, a Nature Conservancy property spanning Bridgewater and New Milford, protects 1,850 acres and more than 18 miles of hiking trails across the Housatonic River Valley. Bridgewater Town Park on Tappen Road gives direct access to Lake Lillinonah with a small boat launch, and the Bridgewater Land Trust's Tappen Brook Trails begin at the same lot. Bridgewater Village Store & Bistro remains the only sit-down restaurant confirmed inside town limits; fuller dining options sit north across the New Milford town line.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get to Bridgewater?
By car — Route 133 runs north from US Route 202 in Brookfield, crossing Lake Lillinonah into town, while Route 67 crosses the northern end of Bridgewater linking New Milford and Southbury. There's no passenger rail or bus service in Bridgewater; the nearest station is Metro-North's Danbury Branch terminus in Danbury.
Was Bridgewater really a dry town?
Yes — Bridgewater was one of the last remaining dry towns in Connecticut until voters approved the sale of alcohol in a 2014 referendum, 660-246. The Bridgewater Village Store added its Bistro and liquor service after a 2016 reopening.
What is Sunny Valley Preserve?
A 1,850-acre Nature Conservancy property spanning Bridgewater and New Milford, with more than 18 miles of hiking trails through the Housatonic River Valley. Open dawn to dusk; permitted uses are passive — hiking, birding and nature study, with leashed dogs allowed.
Is there a hotel in Bridgewater?
No hotel, inn or B&B could be verified as operating inside Bridgewater. The nearest verified option is the Homestead Inn on the Village Green in neighboring New Milford.
Where can I eat in Bridgewater?
Bridgewater Village Store & Bistro, in a building that has served the town's commerce since around 1899, is the one confirmed sit-down restaurant in town — serving breakfast and lunch daily with dinner Thursday through Saturday.

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