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History of Woodstock, Connecticut, USA
Journey back in time to Woodstock, Connecticut, USA
Visit Woodstock, Connecticut, USA. Discover its history. Learn about the people who lived there through stories, old newspaper articles, pictures, postcards and ancestry.




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Woodstock, Windham, Connecticut, USA
In the mid-17th century, John Eliot, a Puritan missionary to the American Indians, established "praying towns" where Native Americans took up Christianity and were expected to renounce their religious ceremonies, traditional dress, and customs. One Praying town, called Wabaquasset (Senexet, Wabiquisset), six miles west of the Quinebaug River in present-day Woodstock, was the largest of the three northeastern Connecticut praying towns.
In 1675, when King Philip's War broke out... the Praying town became deserted, and the English with their Indian allies marched through Woodstock to present day Thompson in the summer of 1676 burning any crops or stored corn they could find.
In 1682, Massachusetts bought a tract of land, which included Woodstock, from the Mohegans. A group of 13 men from Roxbury, Massachusetts (home of the Pastorate of Woodstock's earlier visitor, John Eliot), settled the town in 1686 and named it New Roxbury. Judge Samuel Sewall suggested the town change its name to Woodstock in 1690, citing its proximity to Oxford, Massachusetts, and in 1749 the town became part of Connecticut.
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There is MUCH more to discover about Woodstock, Connecticut, USA. Read on!
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Discover Woodstock: History, News, Travel, and Stories

1737 - House Fire
We hear from Woodstock that last Wednesday night a large and stately house, one of the best in that town, (belonging to John Chandler, Jun. Esq. of Worcester, but in occupation of Lieut. Joseph Wright), was consumed by fire, with all the provisions and furniture, and what was of infinitely more value, three persons, viz. Mrs. Wright, her son about twelve years old, and a Negro man. ‘Tis said Mrs. Wright got out and might easily have escaped, but being desirous to save her son (and who that is a parent can wonder that she ran some risque (risk)?) ventured too far, and perished in the flames.
The Boston Evening Post
Boston, Massachusetts
March 21, 1737
We hear from Woodstock that last Wednesday night a large and stately house, one of the best in that town, (belonging to John Chandler, Jun. Esq. of Worcester, but in occupation of Lieut. Joseph Wright), was consumed by fire, with all the provisions and furniture, and what was of infinitely more value, three persons, viz. Mrs. Wright, her son about twelve years old, and a Negro man. ‘Tis said Mrs. Wright got out and might easily have escaped, but being desirous to save her son (and who that is a parent can wonder that she ran some risque (risk)?) ventured too far, and perished in the flames.
The Boston Evening Post
Boston, Massachusetts
March 21, 1737
1749 - Originally settled as part of Massachusetts, in 1749 Woodstock incorporated and became part of Connecticut.
connecticuthistory.org/ towns-page/ woodstock/
connecticuthistory.org/ towns-page/ woodstock/
1819 - Woodstock
Woodstock is a post town, situated in the northern section of the county, bordering upon Massachusetts, 45 miles northeast from Hartford, 33 northwest from Providence, and 60 southwest from Boston; bounded upon the north by Massachusetts line, upon the east by Thompson, upon the south by Pomfret and Ashford, and upon the west by Ashford and Union. Its mean length is about 8 miles, and its mean breadth 7 and a half miles, comprising an area of about 60 square miles...
A Gazetteer of the States of Connecticut and Rhode-Island: Written with Care and Impartiality, from Original and Authentic Materials : Consisting of Two Parts ... with an Accurate and Improved Map of Each State Authors John Chauncey Pease, John Milton Niles Publisher W.S. Marsh, 1819
Woodstock is a post town, situated in the northern section of the county, bordering upon Massachusetts, 45 miles northeast from Hartford, 33 northwest from Providence, and 60 southwest from Boston; bounded upon the north by Massachusetts line, upon the east by Thompson, upon the south by Pomfret and Ashford, and upon the west by Ashford and Union. Its mean length is about 8 miles, and its mean breadth 7 and a half miles, comprising an area of about 60 square miles...
A Gazetteer of the States of Connecticut and Rhode-Island: Written with Care and Impartiality, from Original and Authentic Materials : Consisting of Two Parts ... with an Accurate and Improved Map of Each State Authors John Chauncey Pease, John Milton Niles Publisher W.S. Marsh, 1819
1839 - Woodstock
Woodstock, Connecticut
Windham county. Woodstock is bounded N. by the Massachusetts line, E. by Thompson, W. by Union and Ashford, and S. by Pomfret and Ashford. It is 8 miles long and upwards of 7 in breadth. The surface of the town is characteristically hilly, but not mountainous or broken, and comprises very little waste land, most of all of the eminences being capable of cultivation. The prevailing soil is a deep gravelly loam, which is strong and fertile. It is best adapted to grazing, but generally admits of tillage; and considerable quantities of grain are annually raised, consisting principally of rye and corn; and it may be considered one of the richest agricultural towns in this part of the state. There are 4 woolen and 4 cotton factories in the limits of the town. There are also about 900 persons engaged in the shoe making business, principally in the western part of the town. The town is divided into three parts, viz. the old society of Woodstock, West Woodstock or New... Read MORE...
Woodstock, Connecticut
Windham county. Woodstock is bounded N. by the Massachusetts line, E. by Thompson, W. by Union and Ashford, and S. by Pomfret and Ashford. It is 8 miles long and upwards of 7 in breadth. The surface of the town is characteristically hilly, but not mountainous or broken, and comprises very little waste land, most of all of the eminences being capable of cultivation. The prevailing soil is a deep gravelly loam, which is strong and fertile. It is best adapted to grazing, but generally admits of tillage; and considerable quantities of grain are annually raised, consisting principally of rye and corn; and it may be considered one of the richest agricultural towns in this part of the state. There are 4 woolen and 4 cotton factories in the limits of the town. There are also about 900 persons engaged in the shoe making business, principally in the western part of the town. The town is divided into three parts, viz. the old society of Woodstock, West Woodstock or New... Read MORE...
1854 - Woodstock
Woodstock, a post-township of Windham co., Connecticut, about 40 miles N. E. by E. from Hartford. It is drained by a branch of Quinnebaug river, called Mnddy Brook, which affords water-power, employed for cotton, woollen, and other manufactures. There are 3 pleasant villages in the township, viz. Old Woodstock, North Woodstock, and West Wood stock. Old Woodstock has a handsome green in the centre, and contains 1 or 2 churches, an academy, and a bank. Population, 3381.
A New and Complete Gazetteer of the United States: Giving a Full and Comprehensive Review of the Present Condition, Industry, and Resources of the American Confederacy ... Thomas Baldwin (of Philadelphia.) Joseph Thomas January 1, 1854 Philadelphia : Lippincott, Grambo & Company 1854.
Woodstock, a post-township of Windham co., Connecticut, about 40 miles N. E. by E. from Hartford. It is drained by a branch of Quinnebaug river, called Mnddy Brook, which affords water-power, employed for cotton, woollen, and other manufactures. There are 3 pleasant villages in the township, viz. Old Woodstock, North Woodstock, and West Wood stock. Old Woodstock has a handsome green in the centre, and contains 1 or 2 churches, an academy, and a bank. Population, 3381.
A New and Complete Gazetteer of the United States: Giving a Full and Comprehensive Review of the Present Condition, Industry, and Resources of the American Confederacy ... Thomas Baldwin (of Philadelphia.) Joseph Thomas January 1, 1854 Philadelphia : Lippincott, Grambo & Company 1854.
1860 - Woodstock Fair
The Woodstock Fair was established in 1860.
The Woodstock Fair was established in 1860.
1870 - The President and family left Washington on the 1st for Woodstock, Conn., to spend the 4th.
St Joseph Herald
Saint Joseph, Michigan
July 9, 1870
St Joseph Herald
Saint Joseph, Michigan
July 9, 1870
1888 - Specifications Called For. Gen. Clinton B. Fisk, the Prohibition nominee for President is accredited with the following three sentences in his Fourth of July address at Woodstock, Conn.:
"He (the saloon keeper) sits supreme in the National Congress and makes laws in the country's capital.
He governs courts of justice and makes ministers of the law and legislatures his lackeys.
He silences the preacher in his pulpit and muzzles the editor at his desk."
This is a serious indictment. We call for specifications. This campaign is to be carried out by cold facts, not by fiery rhetoric. We have great respect for General Fisk, but we are afraid he has set a bad example to the political orators in these three sentences. The country may not have made all the laws it should against the saloon, but it would be difficult to indicate any which have been passed in the last five years in its favor...
St Joseph Herald
Saint Joseph, Michigan
August 18, 1888
"He (the saloon keeper) sits supreme in the National Congress and makes laws in the country's capital.
He governs courts of justice and makes ministers of the law and legislatures his lackeys.
He silences the preacher in his pulpit and muzzles the editor at his desk."
This is a serious indictment. We call for specifications. This campaign is to be carried out by cold facts, not by fiery rhetoric. We have great respect for General Fisk, but we are afraid he has set a bad example to the political orators in these three sentences. The country may not have made all the laws it should against the saloon, but it would be difficult to indicate any which have been passed in the last five years in its favor...
St Joseph Herald
Saint Joseph, Michigan
August 18, 1888
1895 - Woodstock Valley
Woodstock Valley, a post-hamlet in Woodstock township, Windham co., Conn., about 20 miles N.N.E. of Willimantic. It has a church, a grist-mill, a tannery, and a manufactory of roller-cloth.
Lippincott's Gazetteer of the World: A Complete Pronouncing Gazetteer Or Geographical Dictionary of the World Containing Notices of Over One Hundred and Twenty-five Thousand Places ... Joseph Thomas January 1, 1895 J.B. Lippincott
Woodstock Valley, a post-hamlet in Woodstock township, Windham co., Conn., about 20 miles N.N.E. of Willimantic. It has a church, a grist-mill, a tannery, and a manufactory of roller-cloth.
Lippincott's Gazetteer of the World: A Complete Pronouncing Gazetteer Or Geographical Dictionary of the World Containing Notices of Over One Hundred and Twenty-five Thousand Places ... Joseph Thomas January 1, 1895 J.B. Lippincott
1906
Woodstock, a post-village and resort in Woodstock township (town), Windham co., Conn., 41 miles ENE. of Hartford. Pop. of the town, which contains several villages, in 1900, 2095.
Lippincott's New Gazetteer: A Complete Pronouncing Gazetteer Or Geographical Dictionary of the World, Containing the Most Recent and Authentic Information Respecting the Countries, Cities, Towns ... in Every Portion of the Globe Publisher J.B. Lippincott Company, 1906
Woodstock, a post-village and resort in Woodstock township (town), Windham co., Conn., 41 miles ENE. of Hartford. Pop. of the town, which contains several villages, in 1900, 2095.
Lippincott's New Gazetteer: A Complete Pronouncing Gazetteer Or Geographical Dictionary of the World, Containing the Most Recent and Authentic Information Respecting the Countries, Cities, Towns ... in Every Portion of the Globe Publisher J.B. Lippincott Company, 1906
2023 - Here's a list of the best places to go and things to do in Woodstock:
Roseland Cottage:
Start your journey through Woodstock with a visit to Roseland Cottage, a stunning example of Gothic Revival architecture. Explore the beautiful gardens and take a guided tour of the mansion to learn about its history.
Woodstock Hill State Historic District:
Wander through the historic district, which features well-preserved colonial and Greek Revival homes. The picturesque Woodstock Hill offers panoramic views of the surrounding countryside.
Taylor Brooke Winery:
If you're a wine enthusiast, don't miss Taylor Brooke Winery. Sample a variety of locally produced wines and enjoy the scenic vineyard setting. Many vineyards offer tours and tastings throughout the week.
Quaddick State Park:
For outdoor recreation, head to Quaddick State Park. The park has a lake with swimming areas, picnic spots, and hiking trails. It's a great place for a family day out or a peaceful afternoon in nature.
Palmer Arboretum:
Nature lovers will appreciate the beauty ... Read MORE...
Roseland Cottage:
Start your journey through Woodstock with a visit to Roseland Cottage, a stunning example of Gothic Revival architecture. Explore the beautiful gardens and take a guided tour of the mansion to learn about its history.
Woodstock Hill State Historic District:
Wander through the historic district, which features well-preserved colonial and Greek Revival homes. The picturesque Woodstock Hill offers panoramic views of the surrounding countryside.
Taylor Brooke Winery:
If you're a wine enthusiast, don't miss Taylor Brooke Winery. Sample a variety of locally produced wines and enjoy the scenic vineyard setting. Many vineyards offer tours and tastings throughout the week.
Quaddick State Park:
For outdoor recreation, head to Quaddick State Park. The park has a lake with swimming areas, picnic spots, and hiking trails. It's a great place for a family day out or a peaceful afternoon in nature.
Palmer Arboretum:
Nature lovers will appreciate the beauty ... Read MORE...
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