Collinsville is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP) in the town of Canton,

Hartford County Hartford County is a county located in the north central part of the U.S. state of Connecticut. According to the 2020 census, the population was 899,498, making it the second-most populous county in Connecticut. Hartford County contains t ...

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, United States. The population was 3,746 at the 2010 census. The central portion of the village is a

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...

listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. It was built around the Collins Company Axe Factory, a manufacturer of edge tools, such as

axe An axe (; sometimes spelled ax in American English; American and British English spelling differences#Miscellaneous spelling differences, see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for thousands of years to shape, split, a ...

machete A machete (; ) is a broad blade used either as an agricultural implement similar to an axe, or in combat like a long-bladed knife. The blade is typically long and usually under thick. In the Spanish language, the word is possibly a dimin ...

s, picks and

knives A knife (: knives; from Old Norse 'knife, dirk') is a tool or weapon with a cutting edge or blade, usually attached to a handle or hilt. One of the earliest tools used by humanity, knives appeared at least 2.5 million years ago, as evidenced ...

. Collins machetes were the brand of choice in

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

. Collins tools were used almost exclusively for the construction of the

Trans-Siberian Railway The Trans-Siberian Railway, historically known as the Great Siberian Route and often shortened to Transsib, is a large railway system that connects European Russia to the Russian Far East. Spanning a length of over , it is the longest railway ...

, and axes and picks made their way across the country to be used in the

California Gold Rush The California gold rush (1848–1855) began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California from the rest of the U ...

. Admiral Peary carried Collins tools to the

North Pole The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is the point in the Northern Hemisphere where the Earth's rotation, Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True North Pole to distingu ...

. Typical of

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

mills, the Collins Company axe factory was sited on a river (the Farmington), and their production was powered by utilizing the water's strength to turn

turbine A turbine ( or ) (from the Greek , ''tyrbē'', or Latin ''turbo'', meaning vortex) is a rotary mechanical device that extracts energy from a fluid flow and converts it into useful work. The work produced can be used for generating electrical ...

s and power machines. The numerous old buildings ramble along the riverbanks intertwined by an intricate maze of

sluice A sluice ( ) is a water channel containing a sluice gate, a type of lock to manage the water flow and water level. There are various types of sluice gates, including flap sluice gates and fan gates. Different depths are calculated when design s ...

s that run throughout the site. The company closed its doors in 1966, but the factory buildings stayed standing and are now rented out to local businesses. The ambiance of Main Street reflects period architecture with ornate details from the start of the 20th century.

History

According to historian

Diana Muir Diana Muir, also known as Diana Muir Appelbaum, is an American historian from Newton, Massachusetts, best known for her 2000 book, ''Reflections in Bullough's Pond'', a history of the impact of human activity on the New England ecosystem. Perso ...

, writing in ''

Reflections in Bullough's Pond ''Reflections in Bullough's Pond: Economy and Ecosystem in New England'' is a book by Diana Muir, published in 2000. ''Providence Journal'' called ''Bullough’s Pond'' "a masterpiece", and ''Publishers Weekly'' called it "lyrical". The Massachu ...

'', it was in Collinsville that Elisha Root invented the important industrial technique of

die casting Die casting is a casting (metalworking), metal casting process that is characterized by forcing molten metal under high pressure into a mold cavity. The mold cavity is created using two hardened tool steel die (manufacturing), dies which have been ...

. Root was employed by Samuel W. Collins, whose Collins and Company was the largest manufacturer of axes in the nineteenth century. Other famous historical residents of Collinsville included George Washington Flint and William E. Simonds. Collinsville hosts an annual Halloween Parade through the historic town. The parade is held on the last Saturday of October at 7 p.m. Children's activities begin at 6 p.m. Collinsville was voted one of the "Top 10 Coolest Small Towns in America" in the September 2007 issue of Arthur

Frommer's Frommer's () is a travel guide book series created by Arthur Frommer in 1957. Frommer's has since expanded to include more than 350 guidebooks in 14 series, as well as other media including an eponymous radio show and a website. In 2017, the com ...

''Budget Travel'' magazine.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the CDP has a total area of , of which is land and , or 11.79%, is water.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 2,686 people, 1,080 households, and 723 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 1,128 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 97.54%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.56%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.07% Native American, 0.48% Asian, 0.30% from other races, and 1.04% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.60% of the population. There were 1,080 households, out of which 32.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.0% were non-families. 26.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.91. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 24.3% under the age of 18, 5.0% from 18 to 24, 31.9% from 25 to 44, 26.2% from 45 to 64, and 12.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.1 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $60,690, and the median income for a family was $66,550. Males had a median income of $44,414 versus $37,679 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the CDP was $29,050. About 1.4% of families and 1.5% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 2.3% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

Sites

Collinsville is located directly on the

Farmington River The Farmington River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 river located in northwest Connecticut, with major tributaries extending into southwest Massach ...

, and is a common place for people to walk and bike to, due to its convenient location along the Rails to Trails path. There are many cultural attractions in this town center. The Canton Historical Museum is located in a former Collins Company factory building built in 1865. Originally constructed to finish and assemble agricultural plows, the building was converted in 1924 to a recreational facility for its employees. Fred Widen, a pattern maker for the company, used a portion of the building for his large collection of Collins memorabilia. Today, the Canton Historical Society owns the 14,000+ sq. ft. building and has a large assortment of Collins Tools, as well as many Victorian items, a general store, farm/agricultural equipment, children's toys, looms, and a Bridal Parlor featuring wedding dresses worn by Canton residents from the late 1800s. Also of interest, are several Regina music boxes, a large pump fire engine, used by the Collins Company, an Edison phonograph and Edison fans. Upstairs, the Farmington Valley Railroad Society operates a railroad diorama of the village of Collinsville around the start of the 20th century. A research and genealogical library containing thousands of documents and photographs related to Canton and Collinsville history is also located upstairs, including black and white photos of the 1955 flood. Information about local cemeteries in Canton and Collinsville are available in the library. The museum covers three floors with limited handicap accessibility, but plans are underway to make the building more accessible in the future. In the 19th century, a Collinsville butcher feuded with his neighbor.Hirsh, Linda B. (April 17, 1994)

Hartford Courant The ''Hartford Courant'' is the largest daily newspaper in the U.S. state of Connecticut, and is advertised as the oldest continuously published newspaper in the United States. A morning newspaper serving most of the state north of New Haven and ...

Walking Tour Puts the Traveler in 19th-Century Collinsville.
' Section: Town News Extra; Page H1. To spite his neighbor, the butcher built between their adjoining houses a narrow, two-story structure with windows covered by Venetian blinds. The wooden building located between 23 and 25 River Street was the width of a standard stairway and allowed the butcher to block the sun to the neighbor's home and block the neighbor's view of the butcher's property at will.Hirsh, Linda B. (April 17, 1994)

The Canton Time Machine; But There Are Some Places That Can Only Be Remembered.
'' Section: Town News Extra; page H1. The butcher's son got along with the family next door and eventually tore down the Collinsville Spite House. File:5 River Street, Collinsville, Canton, CT.jpg, 5 River Street File:5 The Green Collinsville CT.jpg, 5 The Green File:10 Front Street Collinsville CT.jpg, 10 Front Street File:42 Bridge Street, Collinsville, Canton, CT.jpg, 42 Bridge Street File:130 Main Street, Collinsville, Canton, CT.jpg, 130 Main Street File:Bridge Street, Collinsville, Canton, CT 2.jpg, Bridge Street File:Bridge Street, Collinsville, Canton, CT.jpg, Bridge Street File:Canton Historical Museum Collinsville.jpg, Canton Historical Museum File:Canton Town Hall.jpg, Canton Town Hall File:Collins Company axe factory Collinsville CT.jpg, Collins Company axe factory File:Collins Company axe factory sign Collinsville CT.jpg, Collins Company axe factory sign File:Collinsville Congregational Church.jpg, Collinsville Congregational Church File:Collinsville, Farmington River spillway.jpg, Farmington River spillway File:Mill complex Bridge street Collinsville 2.jpg, Mill complex Bridge street

References

External links