Historic Tales of Bethel, Connecticut

Patrick Tierney Wild

• Publisher: The History Press
• Year: 2011
• Edition: 0
• eBook ISBN:
  9781625841377
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: North American History
• Index: History

Bethel, Connecticut, was settled as early as 1700 in the rolling hills of northern Fairfield County. Rooted in hat manufacturing, the town offered many residents employment in the factories of the Hickocks, Judds and Benedicts. Bethel is also the birthplace of celebrated showman P.T. Barnum, who became an international celebrity yet never forgot his hometown. Now most noted for its picturesque downtown, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Bethel retains its small-town appeal while still offering accessibility to both New York City and Hartford. Join town historian Patrick Tierney Wild as he recounts the trials and triumphs that have given this New England town its charm, from the tumultuous days of the American Revolution to the early decades of the fast-paced twentieth century.

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• Introduction
• 1. The Legend of Luther Holcomb: Bethel’s Revolutionary Riddle
• 2. Captain Daniel Hickok and the Night of the Three Generals
• 3. Bethel’s Tories: Those Who Chose Loyalty over Independence
• 4. The Reverend John Ely House
• 5. Bethel’s Historic Main Street Houses
• 6. Main Street’s Second Meeting House and Congregational Church
• 7. Greenwood Avenue: The Heart of Bethel
• 8. Old Roads and Turnpikes
• 9. The Early Days of the Bethel Railroad Station
• 10. Bethel’s Commerce and Industry in the 1790s
• 11. Bethel’s Hatting Industry and Its King of Hatters
• 12. Comb Making in Bethel
• 13. Bethel’s Cemeteries: Where the Founders Are on File
• 14. Stony Hill’s First Historian
• 15. The Plumtrees Schoolhouse
• 16. Bethel’s Most Familiar Symbol: “The Spirit of the American Doughboy”
• 17. Barnum’s Fabulous Fountain
• 18. Barnum’s Last Visit to Bethel
• Bibliography
• About the Author