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Sports and Recreation
Derby Day on the Housatonic
A rowing event on Lake Housatonic, “Derby Day,” was so popular among Yale students that it drew upwards of thirty to fifty thousand spectators.
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Banner Lodge: A Vacation Playground for an Excluded Population
From the 1930s to the 1970s, Banner Lodge was one of the most popular vacation destinations in Connecticut and actively welcomed a Jewish clientele.
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The Story of Connecticut’s Largest State Forest
Pachaug State Forest is the largest state forest in Connecticut and covers approximately 24,000 acres and crossing the borders of numerous towns.
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Trumbull’s Parlor Rock Park: A Premier Amusement Center of the Late 19th Century
In Trumbull, the arrival of the Housatonic Railroad brought a lesser known but more entertaining development—one of the country’s first amusement parks.
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Peter’s Rock: North Haven History with a View
Far from being a mere recreational hotspot, however, Peter’s Rock is a formation with an extensive history of service to the surrounding area.
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Lake Compounce: Bringing Amusements to the State’s Residents Since 1846
Bristol’s Lake Compounce is the oldest continually operating amusement park in the US and has been open every summer since 1846.
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Preserving Connecticut’s Natural Beauty: Connecticut’s First State Parks
Sherwood Island, Mount Tom, Macedonia Brook, and Kent Falls are among the earliest lands set aside as the parks movement took hold in the state.
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Boat Shoes Have Ties to Connecticut – Who Knew?
During the 1935 winter, Paul Sperry watched his dog run across ice and snow without slipping and got inspired to create a shoe that would help human traction.
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Plainville Has Been Flying High for Over 100 Years
The town of Plainville claims a special relationship with aviation culture that dates back to the earliest days of flight in the state.
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The Park Movement in Hartford
The Hartford City Parks Collection comprises a rich archive, documenting Hartford’s pioneering effort to establish and maintain a viable system of municipal parks and connecting parkways between them.
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Muzzy Field: A Historic Ball Park Survives in a Post-Industrial City
After over one hundred years, Bristol’s Muzzy Field continues to welcome ball players and fans of sports history.
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Luna Park: A 20th-century Story of Amusement and Morality
The story of Luna Park in West Hartford provides insight into the battles between entertainment and ethics in Connecticut during the Progressive Era.
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Andrus Field 1831–1911: Athletics and the Environment
The building of Andrus Field on the campus of Wesleyan University demonstrates changes made to the built environment to meet the changing needs of a local community.
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Mohawk Mountain Made Snow for Winter Sports Lovers – Who Knew?
In the 1930s, skiing became a popular pastime at Mohawk State Park in Cornwall and became famous for documenting the first artificial snow.
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Skating Through Winter
By the 1850s, better-designed skates and interest in healthful outdoor activities made ice skating an increasingly popular leisure activity.
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NFL Great, Andy Robustelli of Stamford
Andy Robustelli played professional football for the Los Angeles Rams and New York Giants, winning several championships and awards during his career.
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Foot Ball Match: Harvard vs. Yale – Today in History: November 13
On November 13, 1875, Yale and Harvard wore the first team uniforms in an American intercollegiate football game.
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The Great Danbury State Fair & Early 20th-Century Outdoor Advertising
In 1909, the Danbury Agricultural Society called attention to its upcoming fair in a most creative manner.
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When the NFL Played in Connecticut: The Hartford Blues
In 1926, the Hartford Blues became the first and only NFL team to call Connecticut home. After a disappointing season, the NFL voted them out of the league.
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Walt Dropo Stars Throughout New England
Few major league baseball players had rookie seasons as good as Walt Dropo’s while playing for the Boston Red Sox in 1950.
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A Pie Tin’s Soaring Sales
Tins used to hold pies at William Frisbie’s pie company in Bridgeport in the late 1800s reportedly provided the inspiration for Wham-O’s most popular toy, the Frisbee.
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Lake Pocotopaug Shapes the Growth of East Hampton
East Hampton is home to one of Connecticut’s largest inland bodies of water, Lake Pocotopaug.
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A Unique Island Attraction in Bridgeport
When Bridgeport annexed the borough of West Stratford in 1889, the acquisition came with a a small 37-acre parcel of land on a barrier island at the mouth of Bridgeport Harbor.
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Reading, Writing, and the Great Outdoors: Frederick Gunn’s School Transforms Victorian-era Education
In 1850, this educator, prominent abolitionist, and outdoorsman founded The Gunnery, a school in Washington, Connecticut.
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Bridgeport’s Catastrophic 1911 Train Wreck
In the early morning hours of July 11, 1911, a train derailed in Bridgeport, killing fourteen people. Among the first responders were members of the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team.
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Jimmy Piersall’s Public Struggle with Mental Illness
Professional baseball great Jimmy Piersall battled with mental illness all of his life.
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Summer Crowds Flocked to New Canaan and Stayed
Like many towns in Connecticut, New Canaan owes much of its modern character to the evolution of industry and transportation in the Northeast.
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Wiffle Throws a Curve in American Leisure Time
When David N. Mullany created the concept for a lightweight ball, he didn’t know his invention would change the way children across the US played backyard baseball.
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Elizabeth Park’s Rose Garden: June is Busting Out All Over
Boasting 15,000 bushes and about 800 varieties of roses, it is the oldest municipally operated rose garden in the country.
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Re-creating Our National Pastime
The Baseball Playograph Company in Stamford brought live baseball to tens of thousands of Americans through the production of its “playograph” product.
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Paradise on the Sound: The Summer Colony at Fenwick
The history of this Old Saybrook community includes Stick-style architecture, Katherine Hepburn, and an iconic license plate image.
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Danbury Baseball History Covers All the Bases
From the hometown teams to the 1903 World Series, Danbury has surprising connections to America’s favorite pastime.
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The Hartford Whalers: Connecticut’s Last Major League Sports Franchise
Major league hockey debuted in Hartford in 1975 and the Hartford Whalers remained a staple of the Connecticut landscape for twenty-three years.
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Battling Bat Battalino: One of Hartford’s Heroes
A tenacious and long-lasting boxer, Battalino went on to win the world professional featherweight championship.
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The “Father of American Football” is Born – Today in History: April 7
A native of New Britain, Walter Camp helped revolutionize the game of American football while a student and coach at Yale and for several years afterward.
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Swinging for the Fences: Connecticut’s Black Baseball Greats
In Connecticut, African Americans played organized baseball as early as 1868, some of the game’s biggest stars played for teams throughout the state.
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The Thimble Islands – Little Islands with a Big History
While initially uninhabited because of their rocky soil, the Thimble Islands in Branford evolved into both a popular tourist destination and an exclusive residential community.
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Mr. & Mrs. Rockwell’s Park
In 1914, bell and ball bearing manufacturer Albert Rockwell donated 80 acres of land to the city of Bristol for the creation of a public park.
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The Danbury Fair, 1869-1981
For almost a century the Danbury Fair thrilled people from near and far. First showcased for its agricultural achievements, it later hosted a number of popular attractions including rides, races, and entertainment.
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And They’re Off!: Harness Racing at Charter Oak Park
The day was cool and 10,000 spectators crowded the stands at Charter Oak Park to see a come-from-behind victory as Alcryon left the other trotters in the dust.
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Savin Rock Park: “Connecticut’s Coney Island”
Savin Rock Park was a seaside resort constructed in the late 19th century in the modern-day town of West Haven.
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Pope Park – Yesterday and Today
Once the proposed site of Albert Pope’s industrial village, Pope Park has served the recreation needs of the Hartford community for over one hundred years.
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Hammonasset State Park Serves the State and its Residents
Located in Madison, Hammonasset State Park provides visitors with opportunities for swimming, sunbathing, or strolling along the park’s meandering boardwalk.
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“The Basque Game in Town”: The Heyday of Jai Alai in Connecticut
Organized jai alai came to Connecticut in the 1970s, but charges of corruption soon brought the sport to an end in the Nutmeg State.
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The Story of the Oakdale Makes Great Theater
The legendary Oakdale Theater in Wallingford reflects over 60 years of evolution in American pop culture.
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Harkness Memorial Park Offers a Glimpse into Early 20th Century Wealth
With gorgeous views of Long Island Sound, Harkness Memorial Park is a beautifully landscaped recreation area along the shoreline in Waterford, Connecticut.
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A Real Connecticut Yankee’s Baseball Career Cut Short
An up-and-coming baseball star discovered playing on the lots of Collinsville, Danny Hoffman played in the majors before joining the New York Yankees.
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Spring Training Baseball Comes to Wallingford
During World War II, travel restrictions limited the distance baseball teams traveled to begin their training; the National League’s Boston Braves trained in Wallingford.
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Andover Lake: A Lesson in Social Change
While residents of Andover and other nearby towns enjoy the property’s 159 acres, Andover Lake played in challenging racial boundaries during the Civil Rights Era.
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A Good Spot and a Healthy Place: A Short History of Charles Island
Before becoming a part of Silver Sands State Park, Milford’s Charles Island served as everything from a luxury resort to the home of a fertilizer factory.
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Almost a Tragedy: The Collapse of the Hartford Civic Center
In the early morning of January 18, 1978, the roof of the sports coliseum collapsed onto 10,000 empty stadium seats.
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Waterford’s Need for Speed
The Waterford Speedbowl is a 3/8-mile oval racetrack located along Route 85 in Waterford, Connecticut.
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Goshen Fairs Well with Agricultural Enthusiasts
In the mid-1980s, members of the Connecticut State Grange awarded Goshen the Connecticut Agricultural Fair.
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Diamonds of the Past: Hartford’s Lost Ball Parks
Erected in 1874, Hartford’s earliest baseball stadium was the Base Ball Grounds in Colt Park, on the corner of Wyllys Street and Hendricxsen Avenue.
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A Fair to Remember in Brooklyn
Sponsored by the Windham County Agricultural Society, the Brooklyn Fair is held annually in August to promote and preserve the area’s agricultural heritage.
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Abundant Wildlife Drives the History of Rocky Neck State Park
Consisting of 710 acres of camping and recreational areas, Rocky Neck State Park is located on Long Island Sound in East Lyme.
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Semi-Pro Baseball in Sharon – Who Knew?
From the 1930s until about the early 1970s, Sharon fielded a team in the semi-pro Interstate Baseball League (IBL).
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Park Street Festival, Hartford 1978
The Park Street Festival is an annual Puerto Rican celebration held in the heart of Hartford’s Puerto Rican community on Park Street.
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Quassy: One of the Last of the Old-Time Trolley Parks
One of the last old-time trolley parks, Quassy Amusement Park in Middlebury has been a staple in Connecticut entertainment for over 100 years.
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The League of American Wheelmen and Hartford’s Albert Pope Champion the Good Roads Movement
How the 19th-century cycling craze led to improved roads and paved the way for future federal highway construction.
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The Rise of the “Second Home” Community in Sharon – Who Knew?
Sharon attracted a substantial vacation community and between 1880 and 1920, wealthy visitors refurbished older homes or built Colonial Revival-style mansions.
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