" To enhance undergraduate learning in the liberal arts by promoting use of library special collections"

Participating Institutions

WINDSOR HISTORICAL SOCIETY
96 Palisado Avenue
Windsor, CT 06095

Phone: (860) 688-3813
Fax: (860) 687-1633
E-mail: info@windsorhistoricalsociety.org
Web site: http://windsorhistoricalsociety.org/

Contact #1: Barbara Goodwin, Librarian

Contact #2: Erin Stevic, Curator (collections@windsorhistoricalsociety.org)

Access hours: Tuesday through Saturday 10 am – 4 pm. Closed on major holidays.

Access restrictions: Materials in the library collection do not circulate. Access to the portions of the museum collection not on display requires an appointment with the curator. Please contact the curator for more information. The use of handheld scanners and digital cameras is not allowed in the library. Lockers and a coat closet are provided.

Reproduction fees: Photocopies are 15 cents per page. Photo reproduction fees may apply.

Other provisions: N/A

Other information: Finding aids for some of the collections are available at http://windsorhistoricalsociety.org/finding_aids.html.

Collection Description: The library houses extensive historical resources relating to the town of Windsor and its people. Highlights include thousands of historic photographs, 17th-20th century documents (many indexed by date and name), more than 350 published genealogies of Windsor families, and subject files. The library also maintains manuscript collections, cemetery records, regional and state histories, town reports, local newspapers, school yearbooks, city directories, ephemera, and maps. The Society maintains two historic houses and has a collection of over 11,000 objects. The museum collections are particularly strong in 19 th century clothing and textiles, early American decorative arts, 18 th and 19 th century furniture and household tools, and products of Windsor industry.

Collections include:

• Account Book Collection, 18 th-20 th centuries, approx. 100 books, farmer, tanner, blacksmith, lumber, hat maker, doctor, general store, fire district, tobacco grower, etc.
• Hayden Collection, 19 th century, 8 linear ft., account books, correspondence, diaries, genealogical papers, deeds, business records from multi-generation family in Windsor.
• Huntington Brothers Collection, 1901-1978, 1.5 linear ft., farm business records that illustrate the evolution of tobacco growing practices in the Connecticut River Valley.
• Christopher Miner Spencer (1833-1922) Collection, 1854-1918, 1 linear ft., primary and secondary materials, patent and business documents, family memorabilia pertaining to Spencer, the prolific inventor of metal products and machinery in the early years of American manufacturing. Spencer is particularly known for his work on the repeating rifle and the automatic screw machine.
• William Shelton (1805-1860) Collection, 1828-1886, 2 linear ft., records and correspondence of local business Pease & Shelton which made hats from beaver and nutria fur.
• First Church in Windsor, Windsor, CT, 19 th and 20 th centuries, 3 linear ft., parish records, church history, and photographs document some of the heritage of this church, considered the oldest continuous Congregational Society in America. The papers of Rev. Roscoe Nelson (1861-1961), who served as the church’s pastor for forty years, complement the collection.
• Ralph C. Lasbury (1906-1979) Collection, 1943-1984, 6 linear ft. As director of the Shade Tobacco Growers Agricultural Association, a regional group of broadleaf tobacco growers, Lasbury was instrumental in developing standards for the housing and working conditions of the tobacco workers. The collection documents a significant portion of his professional activities as the head of various Connecticut regional agricultural marketing and employer groups.
• Old Document Project Collection, 17 th-20 th centuries, over 1500 items, a composite collection of some of the Society’s primary documents including deeds, bills and receipts, court orders, military documents, tax lists, school records, correspondence, medical prescriptions, and family genealogies. This collection is indexed by name, date, and type of document. Other collections in the repository contain many similar materials.
• Marguerite Elizabeth Mills Advertisement Card Collection, 1870-1910, collection of over 1000 loose trade cards features a wide variety of products and focuses on Hartford, Connecticut area businesses and merchants. The collection is organized by topic or advertised product and has a searchable database.
• Textile Collection, a collection of over 2000 items, is strongest in 19 th and 20 th century clothing and accessories including beaded purses, hats, shoes, quilts, and linens.
• Windsor Industry Collection, 19 th-20 th centuries, a collection of over 500 objects, account books, photographs and ephemera from Windsor businesses and industries. Some of the types of industries in Windsor include brick making, hats, tobacco, paper mills, woodworking, shad fishing, cannery, and the manufacture of clothing, electrical equipment, and rifles.

Keywords for other research topics:

• Windsor, Connecticut genealogy, history, Tercentennial Celebration in 1933, 350 th Anniversary in 1983, clubs and organizations, schools, churches, floods and disasters, textiles, furniture.

Back