Hotchkissville Historic District

Hotchkissville is a historic district in Woodbury, Connecticut that stretches about one mile along the Weekeepeemee River Valley, centered around the intersection of Washington and Weekeepeemee roads. The area contains 202 structures, with 160 contributing buildings that display Federal, Colonial, and Greek Revival styles from the 1800s.

The area began as a colonial farming settlement and transformed into a textile manufacturing center after Josiah Hotchkiss converted a sawmill into a textile mill in 1814. This shift brought new people and structures to the rural landscape and shaped its economy for more than a century.

The district is named after Josiah Hotchkiss, whose family shaped the local economy for generations. Walking through the area, you see how residents mixed industrial work with farming, creating a unique blend of factory and agricultural life.

The best way to explore the area is to follow Washington Road on the east side and Westwood Road on the west side of the Weekeepeemee River. This allows you to see buildings on both sides of the river and understand how the community was spread across the landscape.

The district preserves worker houses that show the everyday conditions of mill employees while surrounding fields continued to be farmed. This blend of industrial work and agriculture in the same area is uncommon and offers a rare view of early American industrialization.