Hartford, the capital of Connecticut, is only the state’s fourth-largest city. It was founded in 1635 and in the centuries since has been on an economic roller coaster, from wealthiest to among the poorest. Nicknamed “Insurance Capital of the World,” Hartford was also an industrial town. Samuel Colt perfected interchangeable parts; his wildly successful arms factory is still an architectural landmark. Wife Elizabeth Colt commissioned the Church of the Good Shepherd and parish house incorporating gun parts!
- Wikipedia: Hartford, Connecticut
- Official Website: hartfordct.gov
- Tourism Website: ctvisit.com
- Google Map
- Related: Hartford Preservation Alliance
- Related: Historic Buildings of Connecticut
- For Your Bookshelf: Look Up, Connecticut!: Walking Tours of 25 Towns In The Nutmeg State
Hartford Photo Galleries
Hartford / 100 Pearl Street
Blue mirror glass office tower wedded to the landmark Mechanics Savings Bank in downtown Hartford. Name: 100 Pearl Street, Mechanics Savings BankLocation: 100 Pearl StreetYear Completed: 1988 Architect: Jeter Cook &EXPLORE NOW
Hartford / 363 Main Street McCone Block
A landmark downtown commercial block, well preserved. Name: McKone BlockLocation: 363 Main StreetYear Completed: 1875 Architect: Patrick McKone Style: High Victorian Italianate National Register of Historic Places: Buckingham Square Historic District (pdf) Google MapEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / 385 Main Street Hotel Capitol
Landmark Main Street hotel, now residential. Distinctive chamfered corner and tower, Mansard roof. Name: Hotel CapitolLocation: 385 Main StreetYear Completed: 1861 Architect: John W Gilbert Style: High Victorian GothicNational Register of HistoricEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / 777 Main Street
The former Hartford National Bank and Trust Building, converted to residential use. Distinctive precast concrete window frames. Name: 777 Main Street Apartments, Hartford National Bank and Trust BuildingLocation: 777 MainEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Aetna Headquarters
Said to be the largest Colonial Revival building in the world. Name: Aetna Inc. HQLocation: 151 Farmington AvenueYear Completed: 1931 Architect: James Gamble Rogers Style: Colonial RevivalWikipedia: Aetna Google Map All images copyrightEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Ann Street Historic District
Eclectic mix of historical architectural styles, on the street renamed for Hartford's first female mayor, Ann Uccello. On the block between Asylum and Allyn Streets, opposite XL Center, the MorseEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Asylum Avenue Baptist Church
This is the second church on the site, replacing an 1872 house of worship. The current Collegiate Gothic-style building was erected in 1931. Name: Asylum Avenue Baptist ChurchLocation: 868 AsylumEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Asylum Hill Congregational Church
A Gothic Revival brownstone erected just after the Civil War. Historians note that the architect mainly designed for the Roman Catholic Church; this was an exception. Name: Asylum Hill CongregationalEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Atlantic Screw Works
A part of Hartford's industrial history, half-covered during the flood of 1936. Restored and converted to offices. Detailed terra cotta, red brick. Name: Atlantic Screw WorksLocation: 75 Charter Oak Avenue YearEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Bushnell Park
Claimed to be the oldest publicly funded park in the United States, and part of the East Coast Greenway. The Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Arch commemorates Civil War combatants. OtherEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Bushnell Theater
A building with a split personality: The exterior is Georgian Revival style, the interior is Art Deco. Name: Bushnell Theater, The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts, Horace Bushnell MemorialEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Cathedral of St. Joseph
Not often that you see a church built in International style. Remarkable contrast to the Aetna HQ across the street, in Colonial Revival. Name: Cathedral of St. Joseph Location: 140 FarmingtonEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Center Church
When viewed from the south, Center Church wears a gold halo in the form of the Gold Building. Name: Center Church, First Church of Christ Location: 675 Main Street, 60 GoldEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Charter Oak Cultural Center
A former synagogue, Temple Beth Israel, converted to civic use. Dramatic architectural details in a low-rise building. Name: Charter Oak Cultural CenterLocation: 21 Charter Oak Avenue Year Completed: 1875 Architect: George KellerStyle:EXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Christ Church
The Gothic Revival Christ Church is quite a contrast with the monolithic Stilts Building just across Church Street. Name: Christ ChurchLocation: 45 Church Street, 955 Main Street Year Completed: 1827 Architect: IthielEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Church of the Good Shepherd
Church of the Good Shepherd and Parish House. The parish house is now used as the Metropolitan Church. Both structures were commissioned by Samuel Colt’s wife as a memorial toEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / City Place
City Place (1980) is Connecticut's tallest building - just two meters taller than Travelers Tower (1919). Name: City Place Location: 185 Asylum Street Year Completed: 1980 Architect: Skidmore, Owings & MerrillStyle: Postmodern Wikipedia: CityEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Colt Armory
Colt Firearms Factory, on Van Dyke Avenue, with its distinctive gold star-spangled blue onion dome. Name: Colt Armory, Colt Factory Location: 60-78 Van Dyke Avenue Year Completed: 1855 Architect: General William B. Franklin Wikipedia:EXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Connecticut State Capitol
Connecticut's gold-domed capitol rises on a hill with a commanding view of Bushnell Park and Downtown Hartford. The state's history is carved in the statuary and friezes all around theEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / First National Bank Building
50 State House Square, Hartford CT Name: First National Bank Building, Hartford Federal Savings Bank BuildingLocation: 50 State House SquareYear Completed: 1899 Architect: Ernest Flagg Style: Beaux ArtsGoogle Map All images copyrightEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / First Presbyterian Church
One of the architects - James Renwick, Jr. - also designed New York City's St. Patrick's Cathedral and Washington, D.C.'s Smithsonian Institution Building. Name: First Presbyterian Church Location: 136 Capitol Avenue YearEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Gold Building
Gold Building, Hartford CT; aka 755 Main Street, One Financial Plaza, converted to residential use in 2014. Building has a microgrid – 336 solar panels on roof, plus a 400EXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Goodwin Hotel
Goodwin Hotel, originally Goodwin Apartments, was built at the corner of Asylum and Haynes Streets in 1881. It was expanded in 1891 and again in 1900; the Goodwin Square TowerEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Hartford Square North
Hartford Square North, 10 Columbus Boulevard, is a study in clean lines, curves and ribbon windows. Name: Hartford Square NorthLocation: 10 Columbus BoulevardYear Completed: 1985Style: PostmodernGoogle Map All images copyrightEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Hartford Times Building
Hartford Times Building, now part of the University of Connecticut campus. Beaux Arts landmark at 10 Prospect St. Name: Hartford Times BuildingLocation: 10 Prospect StreetYear Completed: 1920 Architect: Donn Barber Style: BeauxEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Linden Building
Linden Building, built in 1891, is a Main Street landmark with its copper-topped cupola. Now condominiums. Name: Linden BuildingLocation: 1 Linden Place, 427 Main Street Year Completed: 1891 Architect: Frederick Savage Newman Style:EXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Municipal Building
The Hartford Municipal Building is the city’s third City Hall, after outgrowing two previous homes. The land was donated by financier J. Pierpont Morgan. Name: Hartford Municipal Building, City HallLocation: EXPLORE NOW
Hartford / Phoenix Mutual Life Insurance Co. Building
Phoenix Mutual Life Insurance Company building of 1920, designed by NY architect Benjamin Morris. Now used by Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP). (Not to be confused withEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / State Armory
Hartford State Armory, aka Connecticut State Armory, aka Governor William A. O'Neill State Armory, is headquarters of the state militia. It was built with a great deal of cast concreteEXPLORE NOW
Hartford / State House Square Tower
10 State House Square, photographed from State House Square (Old State House) Name: State House Square Tower, 110 State House SquareLocation: 10 State House SquareYear Completed: 1987 Architect: Russell Gibson vonEXPLORE NOW
More galleries to come!