OUR STORY

100 Years of History

In 2025, the Stratford Historical Society proudly celebrates its 100th anniversary. Established in 1925, the Society has dedicated itself to the preservation and promotion of Stratford's rich historical heritage. Over the past century, the organization has evolved in response to the changing times, adapting its methods and expanding its scope to ensure the town's history is preserved for future generations.

This is our history...

The Founding

The desire to provide a permanent and lasting memorial of the Old Stratford, whose prominence in history and tradition seemed rapidly passing into obscurity, moved the late Miss Celia Curtis in January of 1925, to bequeath her homestead, the historic Captain David Judson House on Academy Hill, to a historical society which would prove itself capable of permanently maintaining the venerable two-hundred-year-old house as a repository of whatever might be gathered and treasured of Stratford’s past.

On February 4, 1925, the State of Connecticut granted The Stratford Historical Society, Incorporated, a charter based on Articles of Association filed January 17, 1925 by: Mrs. Adelaide Curtis Gunther, Miss Frances B. Russell, Mrs. Margaret Beardsley DeLacour, Reverend George W. Judson, Mr. John C. Wilcoxson and Mr. Charles H. Welles. The stated purposes of the society were: “to preserve, cherish, and care for all historical material, whether written matter or material objects relating to the history of the town of Stratford, Connecticut; to maintain a building for the preservation and exhibition of such material; to collect and expend money for such purposes and to hold funds and property in trust for such purposes.” A meeting held by the Society on July 10, 1925 enrolled 55 persons as members. By September 25 the number had increased to 189.

Miss Curtis executed a Deed of Trust giving the Society five years in which to raise a fund, the income of which would be sufficient to provide for “the ample and continuous maintenance of the Judson House”, naming as trustees Donald S. Sammis, Harold F. DeLacour and John T. Curtis.

It is difficult to condense from the minutes and records the story of the raising of the endowment fund and the steps taken to perfect a working organization. Suffice it to say that by the expiration of the 5-year period the proposed minimum $10,000 fund had been exceeded by some $3,000 and the property was formally transferred to the Society. The Judson House was formally opened by the Historical Society on May 28, 1926.