In this vicinity stood the fortified house of Ensign Stanley, into which the colonists fled from unfriendly Indians in 1700; the Clark Tavern, repeatedly occupied by detachments of Revolutionary War soldiers; and the academy, established in 1784. On this site, troops listened to the reading of the Declaration of Independence on July 9, 1776. The site and its environs also served the city of Waterbury as earlier locations of City Hall, the Bronson Library, the police station, and fire headquarters in the late 1800s.

Photo: Michael Herrick

Photo: Michael Herrick