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Canton, Connecticut: The World's Leading Axe Maker at Collinsville

Canton, Connecticut

Pictures from Canton

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Collins Company axe factory, Collinsville Farmington River Trail bridge, Collinsville Canton Historical Museum

Canton was incorporated in 1806 on land originally part of Simsbury, its early economy centered on resin, pitch and turpentine making alongside saw and grist mills. Ephraim Mills gave the town its name at incorporation, most likely honoring the Swiss cantons, though a rival tradition ties it to the old Western name for Guangzhou, China; the town today comprises four villages — North Canton, Canton Center, Canton Valley and Collinsville. In 1826, 24-year-old Samuel Watkinson Collins, his 21-year-old brother David and their cousin William Wells bought a sawmill and gristmill property on the Farmington River and founded the Collins Company, which used early mass-production methods to become the world-leading axe manufacturer, producing some 1,300 types of tools that outfitted the California Gold Rush, the Trans-Siberian Railroad and Admiral Peary's 1909 North Pole expedition. Elisha Root developed die-forging and mass-production machinery at the Collins works before later becoming Colt's chief engineer.

  1. An 1865 Collins Axe Company building with three floors of Collinsville history.

  2. An 18.2-mile loop tracing the Farmington River through Collinsville.

  3. A community theater company staging a full season at Canton Town Hall.

  4. A planned 19th-century axe-works company town, walkable today.

  5. Farmington River rentals, classes and guided paddles.

  6. A market, deli and cafe with Friday Open Mic Night.

  7. American pub fare in the old mill village.

Collinsville, a company town turned coolest small town

Around the Collins works grew Collinsville, a planned company village with employee housing, stores, a bank and a church; Collins brought a railroad through the middle of the factory in 1850, and that right-of-way now carries the Farmington Valley Greenway. The business closed in the 1960s, but the historic district — walkable today on the town's self-guided Blue Tour — remains part of Canton's economy through heritage tourism, and Collinsville was once named one of "America's 10 Coolest Small Towns" by Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel. The Canton Historical Museum occupies an original 1865 Collins Axe Company building that once finished up to 100 plows a day and was converted in 1924 into an employee recreation hall with a bowling alley; three floors now hold a reconstructed 19th-century general store, post office, barber shop and blacksmith shop.

Getting there

Canton is a drive-to Farmington Valley town reached on U.S. Routes 44 and 202, which run concurrently through town as the historic Albany Turnpike, with Connecticut Routes 177, 179 and 309 serving its villages. There is no passenger rail station anywhere in Canton — intercity train service is reached from Union Station in Hartford — and the CTrail Hartford Line's nine stations run New Haven Union, New Haven State Street, Wallingford, Meriden, Berlin, Hartford Union, Windsor, Windsor Locks and Springfield Union, none in the Farmington Valley.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get to Canton?
By car — U.S. Routes 44 and 202 run concurrently through town on the historic Albany Turnpike. There is no passenger rail station in Canton; the nearest CTrail Hartford Line stop is Hartford Union Station.
Is there a train to Canton?
No. Intercity trains are reached from Union Station in Hartford; no CTrail Hartford Line, Metro-North or Shore Line East service reaches Canton.
What is Historic Collinsville?
The former Collins Company axe-works village, a planned company town with worker housing, a church and a bank built by the Collins brothers. The Town of Canton offers self-guided walking tours, including the Blue Tour.
What is the Canton Historical Museum?
An original 1865 Collins Axe Company building on Front Street, later an employee recreation hall with a bowling alley, now holding three floors of 19th-century Collinsville history. Open Saturday and Sunday, 1-4 p.m., reopening each year around March 1; donations accepted.
Is there a hotel in Canton?
No hotel or inn inside Canton could be verified. The nearest option is the Avon Old Farms Hotel, just east on US 44 in neighboring Avon.

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