Originally called South Farms, this area was settled in the 1720's as part of the frontier town of Litchfield. The land was surveyed by Captaiin John Marsh in 1715 and was purchased for fifteen pounds from the bantam tribe of the friendly Pootatuck Indians by a committee from Hartford and Windsor. South Farms built its first school in 1747, its first Congregational church in 1764, and established its first cemetery in 1748, while its earliest library opened in 1785. Its boundaries were defined in 1767 when the Ecclesiastical Socitey was incorporated with seventy families. Although chiefly agricultural, South Farms built saw mills and grist mills on its rivers, had several small industries and stores, and developed a summer resort business on Bantam Lake. The South Farms Society applied unsuccessfully for status as a separate town in 1786 and 1810, but in 1859 it petitioned the Connecticut General Assembly, arguing that it was a separate and distinct community with little or no connection in situation and business interest to northern Litchfield. The petition, signed by 138 electors, was granted, and the Town of Morris was incorporated in June, 1859, with an area of 10,464 acres, later increased, and a population of 769. The first town meeting was held June 27, 1859, and the first town hall was built in 1861. The town was named in honor of James Morris (1752 – 1820), a Yale graduate, Revolutionary War captain, selectman, and member of the General Assembly who was best known as the founder and first principal of Morris Academy. A pioneer in coeducation, the Academy operated from 1790 to 1888 and attracted students from nearly every state and many foreign countries.