Dennis Hill State Park is a public recreation area located in the
town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an ori ...
of
Norfolk
Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...
,
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
, that was once the estate of Dr. Frederick Shepard Dennis. The
state park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural ...
offers hiking, picnicking, and scenic views. It is administered by the
Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.
[
]
Features
The park is located in southern Norfolk, with its main access road off Connecticut Route 272
Route 272 is a state highway in northwestern Connecticut running from Torrington to the Massachusetts state-board in Norfolk.
Route description
Route 272 begins at an intersection with Route 4 in West Torrington and heads northwest along the ...
. The road provides access to a picnic area, and a parking area further up the hill, from which there is access to hiking trails and the summit road. Dennis Hill stands at an elevation of . The cleared summit area provides expansive views of the surrounding hills, and includes small pavilions and a large bungalow-style structure.
The bungalow, originally called the Tamarack Lodge Bungalow, is a stone building with a standing seam metal roof. Originally built as a summer lodge providing residential space, its interior has largely been stripped of original features and its windows have been removed. The loft areas on the upper level surrounding the main room were probably intended as sleeping space. The building, a significant example of local summer estate architecture, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
.[
]
History
The that make up Dennis Hill State Park were once the estate of Frederic S. Dennis (1850-1934). Dennis was a successful New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
doctor who summered in Norfolk for many years. He called his estate "Tamarac," and in 1908 retained architect Alfredo S.G. Taylor to design the bungalow at the summit of Dennis Hill. Here he hosted numerous luminaries of the day, including steel magnate Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...
, President William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...
, and conductor Walter Damrosch
Walter Johannes Damrosch (January 30, 1862December 22, 1950) was a German-born American conductor and composer. He was the director of the New York Symphony Orchestra and conducted the world premiere performances of various works, including Ge ...
.[ Dennis gifted his estate to the state in 1935.][
]
See also
* National Register of Historic Places listings in Litchfield County, Connecticut
References
External links
Dennis Hill State Park
Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
Dennis Hill State Park Map
Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
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State parks of Connecticut
Parks in Litchfield County, Connecticut
Protected areas established in 1935
Norfolk, Connecticut
National Register of Historic Places in Litchfield County, Connecticut
1935 establishments in Connecticut