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Hartford, Connecticut: The Constitution State's Capital

Hartford, Connecticut

Pictures from Hartford

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The Mark Twain House & Museum Connecticut's Old State House Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art

Hartford was settled in 1636 by Thomas Hooker, John Haynes, and roughly 100 followers from the Massachusetts Bay Colony under the name Newtown; the settlement was renamed Hartford in 1637 in honor of Rev. Samuel Stone's hometown of Hertford, England, and the city incorporated in 1784. On January 14, 1639, the Connecticut General Court adopted the Fundamental Orders, a framework of government for Windsor, Hartford, and Wethersfield that later earned Connecticut its 1959 designation as the Constitution State. By the late nineteenth century, Hartford had grown into the wealthiest city in the country, known as the Insurance Capital of the World and tied to the Colt Manufacturing Company. Mark Twain lived here from 1874 to 1891, writing Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer in his Farmington Avenue home. Connecticut's Old State House, attributed to Charles Bulfinch and completed in 1796, hosted all three branches of state government until 1878.

  1. Twain's home 1874-1891, where he wrote Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer.

  2. The Uncle Tom's Cabin author's preserved home in Nook Farm.

  3. The oldest continuously operating public art museum in the US.

  4. The 1796 statehouse attributed to Charles Bulfinch.

  5. Hartford's principal performing-arts venue and Broadway series host.

  6. Coal-fired brick-oven pizza, a Hartford landmark since 1936.

  7. Generations-old Italian bakery on Franklin Avenue.

  8. Connecticut barbecue anchoring the Front Street district.

  9. Fine-dining flagship, temporarily in residence at Bar Max.

  10. A boutique downtown hotel in an 1881 landmark building.

Newtown to the Constitution State

Hartford began in 1636 as Newtown, settled by Thomas Hooker, John Haynes, and about 100 followers from the Massachusetts Bay Colony; it was renamed Hartford the following year for Samuel Stone's hometown of Hertford, England, and the city incorporated in 1784. Hooker's May 31, 1638 sermon helped inspire the Fundamental Orders, adopted by the Connecticut General Court on January 14, 1639 as a framework of government for Windsor, Hartford, and Wethersfield — the document behind Connecticut's 1959 designation as the Constitution State. Connecticut's Old State House, attributed to Charles Bulfinch and completed in 1796, housed all three branches of state government from 1796 to 1878; it hosted the 1818 Constitutional Convention and, on appeal, proceedings connected to the 1839 Amistad case and Prudence Crandall's prosecution. By the late nineteenth century Hartford was the wealthiest city in the country, the Insurance Capital of the World, with ties to the Colt Manufacturing Company.

Getting there

Drivers reach Hartford at the junction of I-84 and I-91. Hartford Union Station (One Union Place), opened in 1889 and serving 226,436 riders in fiscal year 2025, is served by Amtrak's Hartford Line, Northeast Regional, Valley Flyer, and Vermonter, plus CTrail Hartford Line commuter trains on the New Haven-Springfield corridor, and connects to the CTfastrak bus rapid transit hub. On some dates the Hartford Line runs bus-substituted service for planned construction; check servicealerts.ctrail.com before you travel.

Twain, Stowe, and a relocated dining room

The Mark Twain House, where Twain lived from 1874 to 1891 and wrote Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, sits near the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center in the Nook Farm neighborhood, the preserved home of the Uncle Tom's Cabin author. The Wadsworth Atheneum, founded in 1842 and open to visitors since 1844, is the oldest continuously operating public art museum in the country, with nearly 50,000 works; it's open Thursday-Friday noon-5 p.m. and Saturday-Sunday 10 a.m.-5 p.m., closed Monday-Wednesday. For dinner, note that Max Downtown's flagship dining room at City Place is temporarily relocated to Bar Max inside the Goodwin Hotel while its kitchen is renovated, a residency that began August 18, 2026 — call ahead if you're set on the usual room.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get to Hartford?
Drivers reach Hartford at the junction of I-84 and I-91. Hartford Union Station is served by Amtrak's Hartford Line, Northeast Regional, Valley Flyer, and Vermonter, plus CTrail Hartford Line commuter trains on the New Haven-Springfield corridor. Some Hartford Line trains run bus-substituted service on planned construction dates — check servicealerts.ctrail.com.
Why is Hartford called the Insurance Capital of the World?
By the late nineteenth century Hartford had become the wealthiest city in the country, with an insurance industry that gave it the nickname; the city's economy was also historically tied to the Colt Manufacturing Company.
What did Mark Twain write in Hartford?
Twain lived in his Farmington Avenue home from 1874 to 1891 and wrote Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer there. The house is a National Historic Landmark that Forbes named 'America's Best House Museum' in 2021.
What is Connecticut's Old State House?
A National Historic Landmark completed in 1796 and attributed to architect Charles Bulfinch, it housed all three branches of Connecticut government from 1796 to 1878 and hosted the 1818 Constitutional Convention. Open Tuesday-Saturday, noon-5 p.m.
Is Max Downtown still open?
Yes, but its flagship dining room at City Place is temporarily operating out of Bar Max at the Goodwin Hotel during a kitchen renovation, a residency that began August 18, 2026.
Where can I stay in Hartford?
The Goodwin Hotel, a boutique hotel in a landmark building dating to 1881, has 124 guestrooms and the on-site Bar Max restaurant and cocktail lounge in the heart of downtown.

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