Washington Green

On Washington Green in Middletown, the maple trees of the Road of Remembrance honor local soldiers and sailors who died in World War I. Citizens planted 33 trees on November 14, 1920 for the city's fallen sons; sixteen were killed in action, while most of the others died of diseases such as influenza, pneumonia, and meningitis. Those remembered included members of Middletown's oldest families as well as sons of immigrants, and several had been born abroad. At the dedication, Father Patrick Dolan said the trees would daily kiss the mother earth to whom the dead had been returned and would constantly extend toward Heaven a prayer for them. The maples surrounded a Civil War monument erected sixteen years earlier to honor Middletown men who fought in the 24th Regiment of Connecticut Volunteers, 21 of whom died during that conflict. In 1927, a stone obelisk was added to further honor the city's World War I soldiers, and four more trees were later planted for servicemen whose Middletown ties had been unknown at the original dedication. In 1998, new trees replaced originals that had not survived. The green now also holds memorials to those who died in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. Washington Street, once called Boston Road, took its present name after George Washington visited Middletown on October 19, 1789, during his New England tour. He recorded being met a few miles from town by respectable citizens, walking about the town while dinner was prepared, admiring its beautiful prospect and good lands, and hearing that about 20 sea vessels belonged to the place. Although he stayed only two hours, the visit left such an impression that the road was renamed in his honor. The green also recalls Arthur Johnson, a 24-year-old farmer and youngest child of Swedish immigrants, who was killed in action at Chateau-Thierry, France, on July 18, 1918; his memorial maple tree originally bore a brass medal with his name. Nearby, Washington Street Cemetery, opened in 1739 across Washington Terrace, contains brownstone markers for women who died in childbirth, Revolutionary War soldiers killed by smallpox, sailors lost at sea, infants taken by childhood diseases, and members of Middletown's African-American community, including several Civil War soldiers from all-black regiments. It also includes the grave of Sergeant James Powers of Connecticut's all-black 29th Regiment, who died three years after the Civil War from a wartime disability.

Middletown, Connecticut · United States