The area's transition from 18th-century settlement to semi-rural community in the 2000s is the story of many Connecticut towns and much of New England. At first, farming barely made families self-sufficient, but in the 1800s, agriculture evolved into a business. Then, over the next 150 years, competition, rising costs and increasing regulation made it less sustainable, despite economies and innovation. In the early 1900s, local water mills, manufactories and other small businesses encountered similar challenges and gave way to industry in nearby Waterbury, Torrington and beyond.
The area's transition from 18th-century settlement to semi-rural community in the 2000s is the story of many Connecticut towns and much of New England. At first, farming barel.y made families self-sufficient, but in the 1800s, agriculture evolved into a business. Then, over ,the next 150 years, competition, rising costs and increasing regulation made it less sustainable, despite economies and innovation. In the early 1900s, local water mills, manufactories and other small businesses encountered similar, challenges and gave way to industry in nearby Waterbury, Torrington and beyond.