COLLECTION 102 · SGC-102
Wallingford · Durham · New Haven · Connecticut
Roads, taverns and bronze markers: following Washington’s journeys through Wallingford and Durham.
The local marked route through Wallingford and Durham commemorates Washington’s visits. It is distinct from the broader Washington–Rochambeau National Historic Trail.
EXPLORE THE ORIGINAL GALLERIES
Follow these links to photographs held by their creators and collections.
Conrad Ward photographed the Washington route marker on June 8, 2024. Two views show the marker and its setting, with the inscription honoring Washington’s 1775 and 1789 journeys.
Conrad Ward / Historical Marker DatabaseView photographs at sourceA photographed walk along the ridge reaches the Washington Trail marker post. The account distinguishes the surviving post from its missing plaque.
Carol Crump Bryner, On Whirlwind HillView photographs at sourceCOLLECTION HISTORY
The bronze markers in Wallingford and Durham remember a road traveled on two very different missions. On June 29, 1775, Washington passed through on his way to take command of the Continental Army near Boston. On October 19, 1789, he returned as president, traveling through the new nation he now led. A familiar road had become a route between two stages of the American Revolution’s outcome. [SGC102-S1]
His diary gives the journey the texture of a day’s travel: departure from New Haven, breakfast at Wallingford and observations made along the way. Roads connected inns and settlements at a pace set by horses. Reading those entries beside the modern landscape makes clear how much has changed, including reservoirs and altered road alignments that now interrupt the older route. [SGC102-S2]
For Washington’s 200th birthday in 1932, a local committee erected seventeen bronze markers. They are commemorative objects, not eighteenth-century road signs. Durham’s history lists their locations and explains the route’s relationship to present roads. The local Washington Trail should also be distinguished from the national Washington–Rochambeau trail, which commemorates the allied armies’ 1781 campaign. Both tell Revolutionary history, but they do not trace the same journey. [SGC102-S1]
The local marked route through Wallingford and Durham commemorates Washington’s visits. It is distinct from the broader Washington–Rochambeau National Historic Trail.
THE SEARCHABLE CATALOG
Search includes catalog notes and the OCR text included with this edition. OCR may misread names or dates; use the original scan to verify a match.
SGC102-S1 · Historical sources · Source dates described in record
George Washington Trail
Municipal history of the 1775 and 1789 visits and seventeen markers erected in 1932.
Read item & source notesSGC102-S2 · Historical sources · Source dates described in record
George Washington Trail
Primary diary account of travel from New Haven through Wallingford and onward.
Read item & source notesSGC102-S3 · Historical sources · Source dates described in record
George Washington Trail
The separate national trail follows the allied armies’ 1781 march toward Yorktown.
Read item & source notesSGC-PHOTO-LINK-008 · Photograph collections · Dates stated by source
George Washington Trail
Conrad Ward photographed the Washington route marker on June 8, 2024. Two views show the marker and its setting, with the inscription honoring Washington’s 1775 and 1789 journeys.
Read item & source notesSGC-PHOTO-LINK-009 · Photograph collections · Dates stated by source
George Washington Trail
A photographed walk along the ridge reaches the Washington Trail marker post. The account distinguishes the surviving post from its missing plaque.
Read item & source notesExtract the ZIP and open START_HERE.html. It includes the catalog, selected images, acquired source text, credits and a searchable SQLite database. New photo additions are hosted in the SGC media library and require an internet connection; original bundled images remain available offline.
