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Colchester, Connecticut: Rubber, Bacon Academy and a Farming Colony

Colchester, Connecticut

Pictures from Colchester

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Colchester Federated Church Day Pond State Park Air Line State Park Trail

English colonists settled Colchester in 1698 on land Mohegan Sachem Uncas had granted to Jeremy Adams in 1661, and the court approved town status in 1699, naming the settlement for Colchester in Essex, England. Pierpont Bacon's 1800 will left $35,000 to found Bacon Academy in 1803; its alumni include Stephen F. Austin, the "father of Texas," and Lyman Trumbull, co-author of the Thirteenth Amendment. Nathaniel Hayward opened the Hayward Rubber Company on Lebanon Avenue in 1847, the largest industrial establishment in the town's history at nearly a thousand employees; he developed a rubber-sulfur process in the late 1830s and assigned the rights to Charles Goodyear, who patented vulcanization in 1844 and took the credit. Aided by the Baron de Hirsch Fund, Eastern European Jewish immigrants built one of Connecticut's largest Jewish farming communities here beginning in the 1890s; by 1920, half of Colchester's population was Jewish.

  1. A mill pond with trails to Salmon River State Forest and its waterfalls.

  2. Nearly 7,000 acres with the blue-blazed Salmon River Trail.

  3. A 50-mile rail-trail on the route of the 1870s "Ghost Train."

  4. Antique farm machinery, open for three annual weekend shows.

  5. Raw-milk farmstead cheese sold from an on-site store.

  6. Rubber, education and Jewish farming history on Linwood Avenue.

  7. Roadside burgers and hot dogs since 1920.

  8. Chicken, brisket and ribs with a Saturday brunch.

  9. A farm brewery taproom on Cato Corner Road.

  10. Italian dining across two levels, with a Monday-only menu.

  11. An 1840 Greek Revival bed and breakfast on Broadway.

Bacon Academy, rubber and a farming colony

Bacon Academy, founded in 1803 under Pierpont Bacon's will, still operates as Colchester's public high school on Norwich Avenue; besides Austin and Trumbull, its alumni include U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Morrison R. Waite. Nathaniel Hayward's rubber works on Lebanon Avenue employed nearly a thousand people at its height; Hayward donated the land for the town green and helped found the fire department and a bank, and his name survives in Hayward Avenue, Lake Hayward and the Hayward Volunteer Fire Department. Aided by the Baron Maurice de Hirsch Fund, Eastern European Jewish immigrants established a cemetery in 1894, Congregation Ahavath Achim in 1898, synagogue buildings in 1902 and 1913, a Jewish Farmers' Cooperative Credit Union in 1912 and the Colchester Farmers Produce Company in 1916. In 2010 Colchester became the first Connecticut town, and the 36th nationally, certified as a Community Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation.

Getting there

Colchester sits roughly midway between Hartford and New London along CT Route 2, where Route 11's short expressway from Salem comes to an end; there is no passenger rail station in town, so travelers by train use Shore Line East and Amtrak at New London or Old Saybrook and finish the trip by car. Route 11, a 7.1-mile freeway from Route 82 in Salem, was meant to continue toward Waterford, but only about half the planned route was ever built and the extension was formally abandoned in October 2016 — which is why the highway simply ends onto Colchester's two-lane roads. Route 16 runs past Salmon River State Forest, and Route 149 carries an Air Line State Park Trail trailhead.

Trails, a working farm and where to eat

Day Pond State Park's mill-pond trails connect to Salmon River State Forest and its 1873 Comstock Covered Bridge, jointly built by Colchester and neighboring Chatham, now East Hampton; the Air Line State Park Trail follows the route of the 1870s Air Line Railroad through town on its way toward the Hop River Trail. Zagray Farm Museum, a working antique-machinery collection, opens to the public chiefly for three annual weekend shows, and Cato Corner Farm sells its own raw-milk farmstead cheese from an on-site store. The Colchester History Museum, run by the Colchester Historical Society on Linwood Avenue, covers the town's rubber, education and Jewish farming history. For food, Harry's Place has served burgers and hot dogs since 1920, Oz'N Bones BBQ and Fornarelli's Ristorante anchor the sit-down scene, and Hop Culture Farms & Brew Co. pours from its Cato Corner Road taproom. The O'Connell House, an 1840 Greek Revival bed and breakfast on Broadway, is the only lodging verified inside town limits.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get to Colchester?
By car — CT Route 2 runs through town, and Route 11's short expressway from Salem ends at Route 2. There is no passenger rail station in Colchester; the nearest stations are Shore Line East and Amtrak stops at New London or Old Saybrook.
Is there a train to Colchester?
No. Shore Line East runs along the shoreline through New London and Old Saybrook, well south of Colchester, and no branch line reaches town.
What is the Comstock Covered Bridge?
An 1873 covered bridge over the Salmon River, jointly built by Colchester and Chatham (now East Hampton) for about $4,000. It sits within Salmon River State Forest on the East Hampton side, not at a Colchester address, and is preserved for pedestrians.
Is there a hotel in Colchester?
The O'Connell House, a four-room bed and breakfast in an 1840 Greek Revival building on Broadway, is the only lodging verified inside Colchester. Book well ahead.
What is Colchester's Jewish farming history?
Aided by the Baron de Hirsch Fund, Eastern European Jewish immigrants built one of Connecticut's largest Jewish farming communities here starting in the 1890s, with a cemetery, synagogue, credit union and produce cooperative; by 1920 half the town's population was Jewish. Congregation Ahavath Achim's 1913 synagogue still stands.

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