I love the location of this marker. It’s on the exterior front wall of Town Hall, mounted to the right of the front door. A nice place of honor for a pretty interesting marker, unlike the boring one I just saw in Bristol. Being mounted on the front wall, it should be no surprise that this is a one-sided marker. It’s from the CT Historical Commission with the familiar white lettering on a blue background. Here’s the highlights — Torrington was named for an English town, it was a spin-off of Windsor, it became a town in its own right in 1740 and had to wait all the way until 1923 to become a city. Manufacturing was king in the early days of Torrington’s history as this quintessential mill town churned out metal works, hardware, textiles, and wood trim. John Brown, the lightning rod abolitionist, was born in Torrington. Recognize the name? You definitely recognize the epic song written in his honor in 1861. John Brown’s body lies a-mouldering in the grave, But his soul goes marching on. Chorus: Glory, glory, hallelujah, hallelujah, Glory, glory, hallelujah, Glory, glory, hallelujah, His soul goes marching on. Want another great Torrington nugget? OK. Quick, when I say«condensed milk» what names comes into mind? «Bordens», did you say? Yup — Gail Borden patented and manufactured both condensed and evaporated milk in Torrington in 1856.(I wonder if I have any of those original cans buried in the back of my cupboard behind the lentil soup?). Anyway, Torrington’s marker is a pretty darned good one. Plus it’s in great shape as far as the paint and lettering go. The full inscription reads: Named in 1732 for Torrington in Devonshire, England, this was one of the townships of the Western Lands allotted to Windsor. Since the early settlers were taxpayers in that town, their shares in the division of land depended upon the amount of taxes paid to Windsor. Torrington was incorporated as a town in 1740 and became a city on October 1, 1923. Industries were established on the banks of the Naugatuck River and smaller streams, among them the manufacture of brass, needles, tacks, hooks and eyes, woolen cloth, and millwork. John Brown, noted for his efforts to abolish slavery in the Civil War era, and Samuel J. Mills, Jr., founder in 1810 of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, were born in Torrington. In 1856 Gail Borden was granted a patent for the«process of evaporating milk in vacuum.» In the following year he began the manufacture of condensed milk in the Burrville section of town. The economy of Torrington remains largely industrial, with many of the earlier products continued and supplemented in modern form. Erected 1980 by the City of Torrington, The Torrington Historical Society and the Connecticut Historical Commission.
