In 1634, Oldham and nine others known collectively as the “Ten Adventurers,” permanently settled in Connecticut after the Massachusetts’ General Court granted them permission to purchase land they called Watertown–a six mile stretch moving in a north-south direction, a five mile tract directly to the river’s west, and a 3-mile stretch to the east–from the Wongunk who called it Pyquag, “cleared land.” Renamed Wethersfield in 1637, “Ye Most Auncient Towne,” is arguably Connecticut’s first settlement. 

The initial ten settlers built homesteads mostly on Broad Street’s eastern side near the meadow where the Wongunk taught them to cultivate beans, squash, peas, and maize. In 1635, a second round of migration occurred thereby increasing the settlement’s population. More homes were erected on Broad Street and what would later be called Main Street running the length of the inner village all the way to the cove that flowed into the river. Decimated by small pox, the Wongunk began to disappear. 

By 1645, farming opportunities had expanded and 125 families had moved to Wethersfield, which consisted officially of the inner village to the immediate west of the Connecticut River, and sister villages called Glastonbury to the east, Stepney (later renamed Rocky Hill) to the south, and Newington further west. The men and women who made up its population had much land with which to work, and theirs would be the first generation of farmers, the founders of Wethersfield. They included names such as Hubbard, Abbot, Chester, and Foote. The population increased consistently, but subsistence farming continued. Life remained uncertain and unpredictable. 

The Connecticut River was integral to the development of Wethersfield’s prosperity and growth as a town. The river was far too shallow for large trading vessels to sail above Wethersfield, making the town the farthest shipping port into interior Connecticut. In 1649 Thomas Deming built the first Connecticut Colony’s vessel, the Tryall, in today’s Cove. Goods from the West Indies, Britain, Portugal, the Mediterranean, Ireland, South America and the northeastern ports of Boston and New York were all being exchanged at Wethersfield. Six warehouses lined the bank of the river ready to store goods for trade. Wethersfield was a bustling shipping center; not only was the trade beneficial to merchants, but also local farmers were able to sell to faraway places items such as wheat, Indian corn, peas, rye, wool, flax, flaxseed, hemp, salt beef, salt pork, ship bread, barley, apple cider, cornmeal, flour and, of course, onions.

The now famous red onion was especially developed for trade and today remains a symbol of the town’s roots in an agricultural past. According to Samuel Peter’s 18th century story, the Onion Maidens were the young women who earned money for silk dresses by weeding and hoeing the onions while the men pursued other tasks. Flax for seed, spear grass for bonnets, broom corn and garden seeds were also raised in support of local industries.

The Connecticut River was one of Wethersfield’s greatest assets, but everything changed when a flood occurred in 1692 that altered the course of the river, shifting its course to the east and sweeping away all but one warehouse. The most drastic change was that the deep water shipping port was transformed into a Cove, closing off commerce and allowing a newly deepened riverbed to Hartford. The Cove, as it is now today, became obsolete for commerce and was transformed into a place of recreation. Wethersfield was still able to remain active in waterway commerce by shifting its port out along the river to the Stepney section of town, now Rocky Hill. Wethersfield remained active in shipping into the 1800s and many of the historic homes in town bear the names of early sea captains.

Silas Deane, envoy to France during the American Revolutionary War, lived in the town. His house is now preserved and operated as part of the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum. In May 1781, at the Webb House on Main Street, General George Washington and French Lt. Gen. Rochambeau planned the Siege of Yorktown, which culminated in the surrender of Britain and independence of the colonies.

Industrial progress persisted regardless of the lack of water power with the employment of windmills and dams to process grain and cloth, and, in the Griswoldville section of town, to manufacture edged tools and run spindles. Agriculture remained the dominant lifestyle and export with farms and fields persisting into the 20th century. Rural Wethersfield became a refuge for workers in Hartford’s shops and offices and the Cove provided a recreation spot. The same broad terrace that attracted early farmers provided choice sites for the residential developments of the 1920s that introduced a suburban character to the Town. In the 1950s, ribbons of highway tied Wethersfield to Hartford, the Insurance City just minutes away.

Today, the meadows are preserved, as are the houses in Connecticut’s largest historic district. The 1764 brick First Church continues to monitor the crossroads near the ancient burying ground, and the Cove still invites contemplation. Old country roads and new highways connect visitors to any destination, making Wethersfield the crossroads of Connecticut.