National Register of Historic Places

Congress Street

Hartford, Hartford County, Connecticut
Listed
October 5, 1975
Type
District
Period
Listed
Ref No.
75001927

About this property

Congress Street is a city street in the South Green Neighborhood of Hartford, Connecticut. Extending for a single block from the South Green to Morris Street, it was developed in the 1850s with modest two-family residences, with infill development of larger apartment blocks around the turn of the 20th century. The entire street was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975 as a good example of a well-preserved late-19th century residential street. Congress Street is located South of Downtown Hartford. It is a narrow one-way street extending South from its Junction with Wyllys Street at South Green, to Morris Street. It is lined with paved sidewalks on both sides, which are separated from the street by a section of cobblestone construction and granite curbs. At the Northern End of the Street is its only commercial building, a triangular "flatiron" building shaped by the Junction of Maple Avenue, Wyllys, and Congress. It houses commercial establishments on the ground floor and residences on the upper floors. The West Side of the Street is predominantly lined by a series of Italianate two-family brick houses built in the late 1850s, while the east side is taken up by larger apartment block dating to the turn of the 20th century. Congress Street was laid out in 1855, serving in part as an access to the back sides of large mansion houses facing Wethersfield Avenue, which it parallels to the east, and whose properties extended all the way to Congress Street. The West Side of Congress Street was developed in the 1850s, benefiting from the growth of the Colt Armory to the East. Prominent residents of the early period included Francis A. Pratt and Amos Whitney, machinists who founded a business now known as Pratt & Whitney Measurement Systems, and whose names grace the more well-known Pratt & Whitney aircraft engine manufacturer. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many of the estates facing Wethersfield Avenue were subdivided or redeveloped, and the apartment blocks facing Congress Street were built. The area underwent a major rehabilitation in the 1970s to restore its 19th-century character. National Register of Historic Places listings in Hartford, Connecticut

Location

Hartford, Hartford County, Connecticut
41.75424, -72.67608

Categories

ARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Overview
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The Land
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Geology
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LiDAR Terrain
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Conflict & War
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The Civil War
The Civil War on this ground, 1861 to 1865: who held it, and the battles, camps and regiments nearby.
The Soldiers
The men who marched from here in the Civil War, named and traced where the record allows.
Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
Who claimed and held this ground, from Indigenous homelands through the colonial powers to the United States.
The Community
How the town grew, who came, and what kind of place it became, traced through the census record.
Rivers & Rail
The rivers, canals and railroads that connected this place between 1830 and 1911.
Notable People
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Finds & Access
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Literature
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The most significant historic sites and landmarks near the location, and why they matter.
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Nearby Historic Sites

Congress Street Historic District (Boundary Increase)
Industrial
0 mi
Day-Taylor House
Industrial
0.1 mi
Armsmear
Early Republic
0.1 mi
South Green Historic District
Listed
0.1 mi
Charter Oak Place (Boundary Increase)
Listed
0.2 mi

Questions about this property

When was Congress Street listed on the National Register?

Congress Street was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 5, 1975.

What type of historic resource is Congress Street?

Congress Street is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Congress Street?

The period of significance for Congress Street is recorded as the listed era.

Can I research the history near Congress Street?

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