Bigelow Brook

The Union Society of Phoenixville House (or Community House) is a historic community building at 4 Hartford Turnpike in Eastford, Connecticut. The village of Phoenixville is within the town of Eastford, and the Union Society of Phoenixville House is located at the junction of State Highway 198 and U.S. Route 44. It is a rectangular wood-frame structure, three bays wide, with a side gable roof and a granite foundation. It has two entrances, one in the center bay of the east-facing facade, and another in the south facade, in a projecting gabled vestibule. It was built in 1806, but spent many years as a Sunday School and social meeting space. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2007.Mill owner Smith Snow built the house as a wedding gift for his wife. In the mid-1800s, a national Union Society movement swept the United States as an effort to teach children to read during Sunday School. At that time, many children worked 6 and 7 days a week and received no education. They were considered "lost souls." The Union Society of Phoenixville gathered on Sundays at various homes. The Union Society of Phoenixville House was one of the homes that welcomed everyone who wished to participate, regardless of age, gender, social status, spiritual beliefs, or ethnic origin. The formal Union Society of Phoenixville incorporated in 1906 with the mission of providing morally uplifting activities for children and families. In addition to the weekly Sunday School, many village gatherings happened in this building. These included pot luck suppers, wild game suppers, card games such as dominoes and whist, fundraising oyster suppers for the volunteer fire company, and holiday parties celebrating Easter, July 4, Halloween and Christmas. In 1918, 87 children received gifts at Christmas from the Union Society. The traditional gifts were an orange and a box of hard candy, but needy children often received a small piece of jewelry, a game or puzzle. Youngsters played croquet in a section of the yard surrounded by the foundation walls of a former barn. Starting in the late 1920s, the croquet court was lighted at night by electricity generated by a nearby mill that waw owned by John Smith, who, with wife Edith Wheaton Smith, lived in an adjacent house. Through the 1950s, children played croquet on the croquet court. When the Sunday School children reached the age of 12, they were urged to memorize the 10 Commandments, and when they could recite these Biblical laws, each child received a King James Bible. One of these Bibles has been donated by Mary Jezierski, who received her Bible in 1937. Mary was a resident of the adjacent town of Ashford, and was one of several children who were transported to the building for Sunday School. All were welcome. Activities continued at the property until the year 2000. In 2002, due to dwindling membership and maintenance challenges, the building was sold to the Town of Eastford. Currently it is undergoing renovations with the objective of reopening it for public use. The building is listed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places due to its contributions to the cultural heritage of the region. It is one of only two Union Society buildings still standing in Connecticut.

The Natchaug Forest Lumber Shed is a historic utility building in Natchaug State Forest in Eastford, Connecticut. It was built in the 1930s, and is one of the only surviving buildings (of a large number) built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the forest. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.

Eastford is a town in Windham County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region. The population was 1,649 at the 2020 census.

The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, based in Ashford, Connecticut, is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, residential summer camp, and year-round center serving children and their families coping with chronic illnesses such as cancer, sickle cell disease and many others.

The Ashford Academy is a historic school building on Fitts Road in Ashford, Connecticut. Built in 1825, it is the oldest public building in the town, serving as a school until 1949. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.

The Benjamin Bosworth House is a historic house on John Perry Road in Eastford, Connecticut. Built between 1791 and 1801, it is an imposing local example of Federal period architecture. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.

Frog Rock is a landmark located on a privately owned roadside park off U.S. Route 44 in Eastford, Connecticut. The rock is a large glacial erratic painted green with a white lip and eyes to resemble a lugubrious frog. The rock was first painted and turned into an attraction in 1881 by state legislator Thomas J. Thurber (a Republican from Putnam), who passed the rock frequently on trips to Hartford and observed that it resembled the shape of a squatting frog. The location became a popular roadside picnic area for many years for travelers between Providence and Hartford. In 1997 a group of Thurber's descendants repainted it, vowed to maintain Frog Rock in perpetuity, and added a memorial to Thurber on a nearby rock.After road work left Frog Rock further from traffic and left the site prone to vandalism, the State of Connecticut offered the land to neighboring towns. Receiving no offers, the state put the site up for sale. In 2012, Joe Lernould bought the 2.5-acre wooded rest stop from the state for $27,000 and then opened a small seasonal antiques store, gift shop, and food truck. Lernould reported four thousand visitors in 2013 alone. The site is popular for picnics due to its five historic concrete picnic tables, and sometimes features live music. It is open Thursday-Sunday, May through September.

The Sumner-Carpenter House is a historic house at 333 Old Colony Road in Eastford, Connecticut. Built about 1806, it is a well-preserved local example of a rural Federal period residence, augmented by a modest collection of Colonial Revival outbuildings. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.

James L. Goodwin State Forest is a Connecticut state forest covering approximately 2,000 acres (810 ha) in the towns of Chaplin and Hampton. The lands became public property when James L. Goodwin donated the personal forest he had been developing since 1913 to the state in 1964.

The Mixer Tavern is a historic tavern, now a private residence, at 14 Westford Road in Ashford, Connecticut. Portions of the building date to 1710, making it one of Ashford's oldest buildings. It is also distinctive for its well-preserved tavern features, and its long history (into the 20th century) as a traveler's accommodation and local meeting point. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994.

Knowlton Memorial Hall, also known as Ashford Town Hall, is located at 5 Town Hall Road in Ashford, Connecticut. It was built in 1924 to house town offices and the public library. Construction was made possible by a gift from Charles Knowlton, whose family had lived in the area since the 18th century. When built, it featured a number of modern innovations, including electrical service (generated on site), and steam heat. In addition to town offices and the library, the building also has an auditorium which is used for town meetings. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994.

Basset Brook is a stream formed at a shallow pond located approximately 1.4 miles northwest of Warrenville, Connecticut, United States,. The brook flows south and east from this pond and eventually to its mouth at the Mount Hope River, with a length of approximately 1.4 miles.