Hartford, Connecticut
The first English settlement in Hartford was commenced in 1635, by Mr. John Steel and his associates from Newtown, (now Cambridge) in Massachusetts. The main body of the first settlers, with Mr. Hooker at their head, did not arrive till the following year.
The Indian name of Hartford was Suckiag. A deed appears to have been given by Sunckquasson, the sachem of the place, about 1636, to Samuel Stone and William Goodwin, who appear to have acted in behalf of the first settlers.
The town of Hartford is bounded N. by Windsor and Bloomfield, E. by Connecticut river, S. by Wethersfield, and W. by Farmington and Avon. It is about six miles in length from north to south, and averages about five in breadth. The western part of the town has a soil of red gravelly earth, very rich and productive. That part near the river is covered with a strong clay or a rich black mould. The latter is principally in the valuable tract of meadow adjacent to Connecticut river.
Hartford City, incorporated in 1784, is over a mile in length upon the river, and about three fourths of a mile in breadth. The alluvial flat upon the river is narrow, being from 40 to 100 rods, and is connected with the upland by a very gradual elevation. It is situated on the west side of Connecticut river, 45 miles from its mouth. It is in N. lat. 41° 45' 59", W. lon 72° 40'. It is 260 miles S.W. from Augusta, Maine; 139 S.S.W. from Concord, New Hampshire; 205 S. from Montpelier, Vermont; 97 W.S.W. from Boston, Massachusetts; 64 W. from Providence, Rhode Island; 110 N.E. from the city of New York, and 335 E. from Washington.
