Welcome to Willimantic by Pete Zizka 1-15-2022

In 1953, James D. Currie produced a 16-page pamphlet entitled “Welcome to Willimantic: The Heart of Eastern Connecticut.” This informative booklet provided an interesting window of life in the community almost 70 years ago. The brochure’s opening section dealt with the city’s early history, noting that the first major settlement occurred around 1810, when a small village developed adjacent to a sawmill located on the banks of the Willimantic River. Due to the village’s rapid growth, Willimantic petitioned for an independent borough-government in 1833. It became a city in 1893 and by 1953, Willimantic had 15,000 inhabitants. Governed by a mayor and common council, it then had a tax rate of 17.5 mills based upon a grand list of $24 million for tax assessment.  In the pamphlet’s next section, Currier outlined the city’s attractions and he stressed that Willimantic was ideally located on the crossroads of Routes 6 and 32 between New York, 130 miles away, and Boston, 86 miles, away.  “Modern highways were kept in excellent condition the year round."  The Greyhound Bus Co., which had a scheduled stop at the Shell Chateau Restaurant, and the New England and Blue Line bus companies; which stopped at the Travel Bureau at 872 Main Street provided transportation services "across New England. W|llimantic’s modern highways brought visitors to a city “surrounded by a rambling picturesque countryside”.  Downtown Willimantic boasted numerous industries, schools, churches, a well-equipped YMCA, three banks, a Savings and Loan association, a public library with more than 18,000 volumes, a first-class post office with a substation on Meadow Street.  The Capitol Theatre offered continuous performances daily after 2 P.M. while the Gem and Strand theaters provided continuous shows on weekends and holidays. Moreover, a country club was located within a mile of the city center, parking was available at parking meters at one cent for 12 minutes and five cents for an hour. Moreover, the downtown area was home to a number of industries including American Thread, the American Screw Company, and several other manufacturing firms. Currier mentioned the city’s poultry industry, pointing out a little-known fact that Willimantic was at the ‘heart of the second largest poultry-producing region in the United States!  The brochure also gave a brief sketch of the city’s modern hospital. The Windham Community Memorial Hospital had a patient capacity "of 139, with treatment possible for 92 adults, 16 children, and 31 infants. Currie also included the frog pond legend in the pamphlet as well as other details about local history in surrounding towns. He gave an outline history of Nathan Hale's birthplace in Coventry, a summary of Lebanon's rich colonial and history and he noted that Scotland had been home to Samuel Huntington, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Currier wrote a description of what he believed to be the area’s most interesting tourist destination, the recently completed Mansfield Hollow Dam. He noted that the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers had completed construction the previous year and that, it was New England’s largest flood control project. Visitors to the dam could enjoy a panoramic view of rolling hills and vast, man-made lake. The 1953_“Welcorne to  Willimantic” booklet concluded  with 'a reminder of the years before shopping malls dominated  the. country, noting that Willimantic was the shopping center for the region and that its “modern stores" offered the best in vegetables, fruits, produce, meats and clothing.” If you enjoy these brief looks at our area’s history, you may enjoy visiting threadcity.us. The site has 2,000 historical photos in 50 galleries. It has over 500 articles by Tom Beardsley, 50 by Pete Zizka and others by various authors as well as much more historical information. The Chronicle has been publishing our stories and photos for almost 15 years now. In 2022 we’ll be taking a look at the growth of several Willimantic neighborhoods, the beginnings of UConn and the coming of utilities into the area. We’ll also highlight some interesting characters and events from years past. Log on to threadcity.us for more photos and articles and to discover more facts about Willimantic, Windham and surrounding towns.   Click on photo for larger version

<<HOME>>                    <<back to Historical Articles index>>