This two-sided marker from the CT Historical Commission, with the familiar white lettering on a blue background, is located just on the side of the road where Routes 320 and 74 merge near a town green. The inscription is the same on both sides. The marker dates to 1976 and is in very good condition. The marker summarizes the key points in Willington’s history, ranging from its initial settlement in 1720, its farming roots, and industrialization throughout the 1800’s. It had all sorts of mills and factories for metal works, textiles, tools, and glass-works. The marker contained a word I had never seen before«demijohns:. I looked it up and learned it’s a long-necked glass bottle. Live and learn !! The full inscription reads: In 1720 a party of eight men, originally from England, bought sixteen thousand acres in this region and called it Wellington. One of these, Roger Wolcott, subsequently became governor of Connecticut(1750 – 1754). After a century of farming the town gradually expanded industrially until 1845 when it boasted a thread mill, a cotton mill, three silk factories, a scythe factory, four comb factories, button mils, and a glassworks(1815 – 1871) producing demijohns and flasks with varying designs. Persons of distinction born here were Jared Sparks(1789 – 1866), historian and biographer and president of Harvard; Elias Loomis, professor at Yale, celebrated mathematician and astronomer. Erected 1976 by Town of Willington, the Willington Historical Society, and the Connecticut Historical Commission.
