Torrington Historical Society

Help support our FREE and ACCESSIBLE programs! 

Your contribution will make a difference!  The Torrington Historical Society provides free programs for school groups and the general public and we do this to make sure that these programs and events are accessible to all.  However, presenter fees and other program expenses are costly and we need your help funding these expenses for the 2026 year. Programs include lectures, book talks, walking tours, outreach presentations, virtual programs, school presentations, special concerts, and cemetery tours. 

Please consider a gift to the Torrington Historical Society to help fund our free programs. All donations are greatly appreciated. 

Donors will be acknowledged in the Torrington Historical Society 2026 Annual Report. Thank you.

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About the Torrington Historical Society:
The museum is dedicated to collecting, preserving and sharing Torrington's diverse history including the stories of industry, immigration and innovation that have shaped Torrington and the nation. Visitors to the Torrington Historical Society can view two award-winning exhibits (free), take guided tours of the Hotchkiss-Fyler House Museum, or study historic information in the John H. Thompson Research Library and Archive. The Society's audiences include schools, visitors from near and far, and researchers who visit to study, learn and appreciate Torrington's history and its impact on national history. In addition to its Main Street property, the Society is the steward of the John Brown Birthplace where the noted abolitionist was born in 1800. The birthplace has recently been designated a site on the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom (National Park Service). Thanks to a collaboration with the Torrington Trails Network, hiking trails have been established at this site and are open to the public. 

Center for History and Culture: The Torrington Historical Society is currently planning for a new facility that will expand our services for the public and protect Torrington's significant historic collections. The Center for History and Culture, a climate-controlled and handicapped accessible complex will house an exhibit gallery, research library and archive, collections storage facility, multipurpose education space and unique public event space. 

Click the link below to take a virtual walk through the planned Center for History and Culture

https://torringtonhistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/ths_virtual_walkthrough-720p.mp4