Torrington Historical Society

Daytime Holiday Tours at the Hotchkiss-Fyler House Museum
2024-12-13 15:00 - 16:00, 2024-12-14 13:00 - 14:00, 2024-12-14 14:00 - 15:00, 2024-12-14 15:00 - 16:00, 2024-12-19 13:00 - 14:00, 2024-12-19 14:00 - 15:00, 2024-12-19 15:00 - 16:00, 2024-12-20 13:00 - 14:00 UTC and 14 more dates | Torrington Historical Society, 192 Main Street, Torrington, CT, 06790
Daytime Holiday tours at the Hotchkiss-Fyler House Museum
Take a guided tour of one of Connecticut’s notable house museums, decorated for the Christmas season. Operated by the Torrington Historical Society, the Hotchkiss-Fyler House Museum, built in 1900, features original family furnishings, impressive woodwork, painted and stenciled walls, and collections of fine and decorative arts. During the holiday season the house takes on a special ambiance when it is decorated with Christmas trees, vintage ornaments, wreaths, greenery, and white lights. Antique toys from the Society’s collection will also be on display and the dining room table will be set for Christmas dinner with linens, fine china, silverware and crystal from the Hotchkiss collection. Tours are for the first and second floors of the home.
Day time Tours Admission:
$15 Non Members; $5 for Torrington Historical Society members.
Children 6 and under $5
To Register please use the link below:
Holiday Daytime Tours

Evening Holiday Tours at the Hotchkiss Fyler House Museum
2024-12-18 06:00 - 19:00, 2024-12-18 16:00 - 17:00, 2024-12-18 17:00 - 18:00 | Torrington Historical Society, 192 Main Street, Torrington, CT, 06790
Candlelight Holiday tours at the Hotchkiss-Fyler House Museum
Take a guided tour of one of Connecticut’s notable house museums, decorated for the Christmas season. Operated by the Torrington Historical Society, the Hotchkiss-Fyler House Museum, built in 1900, features original family furnishings, impressive woodwork, painted and stenciled walls, and collections of fine and decorative arts. During the holiday season the house takes on a special ambiance when it is decorated with Christmas trees, vintage ornaments, wreaths, greenery, and white lights. Antique toys from the Society’s collection will also be on display and the dining room table will be set for Christmas dinner with linens, fine china, silverware and crystal from the Hotchkiss collection. Tours are for the first and second floors of the home.
Evening Tour Admission:
$20 Non Members; $15 for Torrington Historical Society members.

Register using the following link:
Holiday Candlelight Tours

Connecticut's Stone Walls with Professor Mitch Wagener, WCSU
2025-02-26 18:30 - 19:30 | Torrington Historical Society, 192 Main Street, Torrington, CT, 06790
Connecticut’s Stone Walls with Professor Mitch Wagener, WCSU
In our corner of Connecticut, it is almost impossible to walk through the surrounding forests and fields or drive along the many winding country roads without coming across a historic stone wall. We might romanticize their existence and envision the farmers that perhaps cleared their fields and marked boundaries with them, but have you ever wondered just where those rocks came from? Professor Mitch Wagener from Western Connecticut State University will share the story of how these stone fences came to be as rounded stones, eroded from mountains of the north, were carried by ice sheets to what is now Connecticut and then left behind as the ice melted, eventually becaming covered by soil and only much later became an annoyance to farmers who stacked them up at the edges of their property. Although the farmers are largely gone, the stone fences remain. Come hear their story.
Tickets available on Eventbrite
Connecticut’s Stone Walls

The Life and Times of James "Professor Jim" Williams: An African American Story from Connecticut
2025-04-02 18:30 - 19:30 | Torrington Historical Society, 192 Main Street, Torrington, CT, 06790
Kevin Johnson, performer and long term member of the Connecticut State Library’s History and Genealogy Staff, presents the story of James Williams. Known as “Professor Jim”, he worked as a janitor at Trinity College for over 50 years where he became a beloved and respected figure among students. Kevin will take you on a journey of Professor Jim’s life from his early days in New York, to his escape from enslavement and adventure on the high seas, his time in battle in the War of 1812 and his final years at Trinity College.
The event is in the Carriage House located behind the Torrington Historical Society’s Hotchkiss Fyler House at 192 Main Street. Free parking is located behind the house, additional parking on the street.
To register:
“Professor Jim” An African American Story

The History of Beekeeping: Bees in Torrington, Connecticut, North America and the World
2025-05-07 18:30 - 19:30 | Torrington Historical Society, 192 Main Street, Torrington, CT, 06790
History of Beekeeping: Bees in Torrington, Connecticut, North America, and the World
This program focuses on the evolution of beekeeping from the collection of honey from wild hives to the domestication of bees into managed hives. We will discuss how ancient civilizations collected and used honey, how bees came to the US, the rising popularity of beekeeping as a hobby in Connecticut and the importance of hives in modern agricultural practices. Information is presented via slides and short clips with hands-on teaching materials and a featured object from Torrington Historical Society’s own collection. Participants can taste early summer and fall honey to observe the differences. Information on planting for bee health will be provided.
Tammi Worsham is the Chair of the Outreach Committee of the Back Yard Beekeepers Association. Tammi has kept bees in three states over a span of a decade and a half. Her interest in keeping bees was piqued by a viewing hive at the Wagner Institute of Science in Philadelphia and she knew she was hooked. Tammi then sought out any opportunity to have her hands in hives. She volunteered with inspections at a community garden just west of the University of Pennsylvania until she found a mentor. In 2013, Tam answered an ad from a beekeeper looking for help. This beekeeper was a member of the Philadelphia Beekeepers Guild, which gave her access to an enthusiastic community. She found working under someone’s mentorship to be an invaluable experience. After several years of helping with the beekeepers’ hives on urban roofs and farms, she was ready for a more independent beekeeping experience. Tammi was able to start her own hives with two packages in Fairfield. Now she keeps bees in four different towns and talks about her hobby throughout the state! Connecticut’s colder winters have given her new issues to learn about and overcome. Tammi is committed to continuing her education and broadening her knowledge of how to best keep bees healthy and nourished in this region and looks forward to working to share the benefits of these very special social insects.
This program is sponsored by Thomaston Savings Bank.
Tickets on Eventbrite through link below:
The History of Beekeeping

Frederick Douglass: From Slave to Statesman with Professor Bryan Sinche, UHART
2025-05-21 18:30 - 19:30 | Torrington Historical Society, 192 Main Street, Torrington, CT, 06790
Frederick Douglass, From Slave to Statesman – Professor Bryan Sinche, University of Hartford
Frederick Douglass was a writer, an editor, an activist, a government minister, and the de facto spokesman for nineteenth-century Black America. In this lecture, Bryan Sinche will highlight Douglass’s achievements as a pre-Civil War author and abolitionist, explain his importance as a Civil Rights leader in the postwar period, and reflect on Douglass’s enduring legacy.
Bryan Sinche is Professor and Chair of English and Modern Languages at the University of Hartford. He is a scholar of nineteenth-century African American literature and, most recently, the author of Published by the Author: Self-Publication and Nineteenth-Century African American Literature, which was published by the University of North Carolina Press and was a finalist for the 2024 Book Prize presented by the Association for the Study of African American Life and History.
To Register:
Frederick Douglass
This event is generously sponsored by Thomaston Savings Bank.

Connecticut Open House Day - Free Admission
2025-06-14 12:00 - 16:00 | CT
Join us for Connecticut Open House Day on Saturday June 14th where you will have the opportunity to visit:

The first floor of the historic Hotchiss Flyer House
The Torrington History Museum “No Place Like Home: The History of Torrington
Pursuit of Precision: The Hendey Machine Company

Admission is free. The Museum is open from 12-4 p.m.
