TOTOKET HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Photos From The Archives
A collection of photos from the history of North Branford + Northford
The Northford Creamery
was located just north of where the Northford Post Office is now. There was a small dam just north of the creamery. The remains of that dam can still be seen, The company opened in 1884 and in 1887 processed 1,313,198 quarts of milk.
The Upper Pond and Dam
This was the water supply for the Maltby-Fowler Factory. There was another dam just downstream which supplied power to the Creamery and the Tinware Factory.
The dam on the Upper Pond
was also known as the Brush Pond Dam. The dam collapsed in 1926 (shown here) and in June, 1970, the result of very heavy rainfall. It was rebuilt and powered the factory site until ~1935 when the factory was demolished.
Maltby-Fowler Factory
was located on Route 17 where the broken dam is just north of the Northford Post Office. Numerous useful products were manufactured here including. pins, brushes, cocoanut dippers, and cards.
Beers Store
built around 1850 by Russell Clark as a clothing store. In the late 1800s it was purchased by Ralph Beers and operated as general store. In 1928 it was purchased by Richard & Anna Scholz. It has had other uses including a fish market as late as the 1980s. The second floor was Totoket Hall, used for dances and meetings.
Prior to Lake Gaillard
Prior to the establishment of Lake Gaillard the road, now Route 80, went over the hill as shown on the right. The Shoreline Electric Railway was located where Foxon Road (Route 80) is now. The spur shown on the left went out to the concrete plant at the dam site.
Women Only Fishing Lodge.
was situated on the Branford River near Valley Road.
The intersection of Foxon & Totoket Roads
looking west. The building on the right was the Totoket Post Office. The upper floor was a card shop.
Totoket Valley
in the early 1920s before The North Branford Dam.
May 1, 1926
looking west. Construction is underway. Note the use of steam shovels as well as hundreds of horses. A rail spur was built from the New Haven Trap Rock Co. to the northern side of the dam where a concrete plant was built.
July 1, 1927
looking West. The dam is nearly complete.
The Nathan Harrison House
While Lake Gaillard was filling the house became surrounded by water. It was jacked up and put on sledges. In winter the house was skidded down on the ice and hauled up to its present location on Beech Street.
The Nathan Harrison House Today
The Nathan Harrison House today
The Dam and Lake Gaillard
as they exist today.
The Curtiss-Rose House
The home was built in 1724 by Jonathan Rose. It was sold to the Rev. William Curtiss in 1866. He went bankrupt and lost the house in foreclosure. In 1906 it was purchased by John & Daniel Rose. It was probably the largest farm in the valley comprising ~ 800 acres. It was purchased by the New Haven Water Company in 1923.
The Curtiss-Rose House
Two rooms from the Curtiss-Rose House were acquired by Yale University. They were removed and reassembled at the Yale University Art Gallery in New Haven in 1928. The Gallery was renovated in 2012 and one of the Curtiss-Rose rooms was reinstalled in 2013. It is worth a trip to New Haven.
Curtiss-Rose House Model Room
The Totoket Historical Society, Inc. possesses a model of one of he rooms from the Curtiss-Rose House. This is located at The Reynolds-Beers House.
Machinery of the Millpond factory
The remains of the original undershot water wheel used to drive the machinery of the Millpond factory. This wheel may have been installed in the mid 1800s.
A military voucher for 5 cents
found in the diary shown above. A voucher for 10 cents was found with other family possessions. Five cents in 1863 would be worth approximately $1.90 today.
73 Civil War Letters of Albert Uriah Platts
Albert served as a Corporal in the Union Army from late 1862 to June 1865. He survived Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, The Battle of Atlanta, Sherman's March to the Sea, and many other battles.
Zion Episcopal Church
Zion Episcopal Church in its original location on Foxon Road.
1935 Connecticut Tercentenary Parade
One of the participants in the 1935 Connecticut Tercentenary Parade in North Branford.
WWII Air-Raid Station
located on Route 139 near the center of North Branford. Nearly every town had a station manned to look out for enemy aircraft. In addition, Air-Raid Wardens walked the town in the evening to make sure homes were "blacked out," that is no light showed from the windows.
Col. William Douglas
Northford's Revolutionary War Hero. Read about Col. William Douglas on our "Research Documents" page.
Jerome Harrison
who gave the land for the Jerome Harrison School, The Bare Plain Chapel and the Bare Plain Cemetery.
Clara Eliza Smith, 1865 - 1943
Who donated money to build the Edward Smith Library in Northford. She was Head of the Mathematics Department at Wellesley College. Interestingly, she was the first white woman to cross the Gobi Desert.
North Branford Fair - 1885
North Branford Fife & Drum Corp
Maltby-Fowler Factory - 1920's
Maltby-Fowler Factory, on the Farm River just north of Northford Center, probably 1920s or early 30s, looking South. That is Middletown Avenue on the right.
Hand tinted postcard
of Northford Center. Probably 1920s.
Hand tinted photograph
North Branford Congregational Church. Date unknown.
Harrison's Lumber Mill
on Rose's Brook. Now part of Lake Gaillard Watershed.
Early Mail Carrier
in Front of Alling House, Old Post Road, Northford.
Fred Davis Family Home
Middletown Avenue, Northford. This property is now The Rosabianca Vinyards.
Branford Steam Railway
The line runs from the quarry to the docks at Pine Orchard. Date unknown, probably 1920s.
Zion Episcopal Church
in its original location on Route 80. Photo probably early 1950s.
The Warham Williams House
as it existed in Northford Center for more than 225 years. (Photo from The Library of Congress)
The Warham Williams House
prior deconstruction
The Warham Williams House
Deconstructing the 1750 Warham Williams House in Northford Center prior to moving and reassembling it in Roxbury, CT in 1977. The house stood on a small hill where The Rite-Aid Pharmacy is now
The Warham Williams House
Warham Williams was the first pastor of The Northford Congregational Church. You can read about the life of Warham Williams and his Northford home in the document entitled Warham Williams: A Country Parson on our "Research Documents 1" page.
The Warham Williams House
as it stands today in Roxbury, CT.
Indian Rocks or Indian Ovens
The so-called Indian Rocks or Indian Ovens located off of Old Post Road, Northford. The "ovens" were purportedly used by local Native Americans to cook and store food. Examination by The State Archaeologist has determined that no such use was ever made of these natural rock formations.
The Old Northford Cemetery
Burials go back to the 1740s
The Bare Plain Chapel
stood on Route 80 directly across from the Bare Plain Cemetery and was used as a place of religious worship without regard to any particular denomination. It was abandoned in 1935 and sold. The land is now a parking lot for the Jerome Harrison School.
A New Years Wish - Jesse Linsley, Branford, Feb 26, 1822
One Female companion soften my years,
Two Thousand a year to support my affairs,
Three Dogs and a gun when to sport I incline,
Four Horses and chaise to indulge me and mine,
Five Jolly companions with whom to make merry.
Six Dishes each day with six glasses of sherry,
Seven Beds in my house for my friends and their leisure,
Eight Something or other to add to their pleasure,
Nine Pounds in my Pocket, when cash I require,
Ten Favors are all that on earth I desire,
And A passport to heaven, when from earth I retire.
Jesse Linsley, February 26, 1821
Jesse, born April 27, 1787, was the son, and 5th Child, of Dr. Reuben Linsley and Tryphana Baldwin. Dr Linsley was a well known and prosperous Physician. Jesse was one of the original members of the Zion Episcopal church in North Branford when it was founded in 1812. When North Branford separated from Branford in 1831 Capt. Jesse Linsley was chosen as First Selectman. he was also elected again in 1835. His brother Chauncey was first Selectman from 1836-1838.
The Farm River Flood
The Farm River again flooded in April of 1970 and the dam was once again breached. It was not rebuilt. This photo appears to have been taken the day the dam collapsed.
Epaphrus Chapman Maltby
Epaphrus Chapman Maltby In the mid-1800s he originally built the "Brick Factory" located at the Millpond Tavern Site in Northford where many industries were located. Cocoanut dippers, farm machinery, desiccated cocoanut, combs, pins, Christmas cards, brushes and other items were manufactured here. The facility stood until the 1930s when it was torn down. Mr. Maltby lived in the house on the northwest corner of Maltby Lane and Middletown Avenue.
Miss Mary Foote
Mary Foote was the first woman to be admitted to the Bar in New Haven County. She was a graduate of The Little Red Schoolhouse.
Miss Grace Foote, Mary's Cousin
Grace also attended The Little Red Schoolhouse and later became a teacher there.
Northford Centennial Celebration, August 21, 1931.
Northford/North Branford - 100 years as a separate town. Northford Store in the background.
Northford Centennial Celebration, August 21, 1931.
Northford/North Branford - 100 years as a separate town. Photo shows Northford Congregational Church in the upper right. Note the child in the cab of the truck.
Northford Wedding
Northford Wedding - Northford Congregational Church. Probably late 1920s or 1930s.
