The Naugatuck Historical Society

Naugatuck Historic District
The Naugatuck Center Historic District encompasses the institutional, commercial, and residential nucleus of the Borough of Naugatuck. Located on the west side of the steep Naugatuck River Valley, the Center consists of a grid of North-South streets that parallel the river.

The District rises in stages from Water Street, which runs along an embankment above the river, to a fairly level narrow plain occupied by Church and Meadow Streets, the principal downtown thoroughfares. On the slope of the hill that borders the western side of the District, Hillside Avenue winds its way up to Terrace and Fairview Avenues, where most residential properties are confined to the west side of these streets and overlook the downtown some 150 feet below.

The District contains 160 resources, of which 137 contribute to the significance of the District. Among the principal contributing resources are 30 institutional an commercial buildings, which include five churches, three schools, two banks, the town-owned library, firehouse, and railroad station (now, the Naugatuck Historical Society Museum), and 76 residences.

The three sites in the District include the Naugatuck Green and its associated monuments. Among the 23 contributing buildings are seven barns and/or carriagehouses that have been converted to garages or other uses.

Some features contained in the District
      the Naugatuck Green, designed in 1895 by the New York architectural firm of McKim, Mead & White;
      the Civil War Memorial, designed in 1885 and the Memorial Fountain, designed in 1895;
      the Salem School, designed by McKim, Mead & White, is a Second Renaissance Revival building erected in 1893 at the head of the Green.