Visit the History Room

Wednesday 11:00-4:00
Second Thursday of the month 1:00-4:00
(or by appointment)
Email: wiltonhistory@wiltonlibrary.org
Phone: 203-762-6330

The History Room is staffed by archivists Julie Hughes and Nick Foster on Wednesdays and Thursdays.

To get the most out of your visit, email or call ahead to confirm the History Room will be open, reserve a time with Julie or Nick, and let us know what topic you are researching. You can use History Room materials even if you cannot come during our regular staffed hours. Simply ask a reference librarian for assistance anytime the Wilton Library is open.

What's in the Wilton History Room?

resource

Genealogy

Genealogical information in the form of notes, family trees, obituaries, newspaper clippings, and other documents pertaining to early Wilton families.

research
IMG_3584.jpg
Resource

Manuscripts

Contains diaries and journals, daybooks and ledgers, school records, correspondence, literary works, and the collected papers of early Wilton families and prominent individual residents.

research
IMG_3595.jpg
resource

Maps

Contains maps and atlases of Wilton and Fairfield County, Connecticut, in addition to local blueprints, plans, charts, and lists of cartographical interest.

research
IMG_3590.jpg
resource

Neighborhoods and old houses

Contains draft survey forms, index photographs, research notes, and other documentation relating to houses and neighborhoods.

research
IMG_3589.jpg
resource

Photographs

Contains photographs, slides, postcards, paintings, line drawings, and other imagery pertaining to Wilton history.

research
45124_ca_object_representations_media_13243_medium.jpg
Resource

Printed matter

Contains a wide range of printed matter relating to Wilton history, including pamphlets, almanacs, reports, and innumerable other publication types.

research
IMG_3512.jpg
resource

Historical Information

Contains newspaper clippings and magazine articles, as well as correspondence and other original documentation.

research
IMG_3485.jpg
And more

Full Collection

Search all of our Collections online.

Search
IMG_3615.jpg

Historic House Surveys of Wilton

Phase I (1989) and Phase II (2018)

Burial Indexes for Wilton Cemeteries

Wilton Cemeteries

Local Periodicals

Land Records

Wilton's land and probate records are online at FamilySearch. Access to pre-1802 Wilton records (which were recorded in Norwalk and Fairfield) is restricted, but you can view them at the Wilton History Room, which is a FamilySearch affiliate location.
FamilySearchLogo2

FamilySearch Affiliate Library

The Wilton History Room is a registered FamilySearch Affiliate Library. With a free FamilySearch user account, patrons doing more advanced genealogical research can view FamilySearch’s large quantity of access restricted materials in the Wilton History Room.

Explore

There are four ways to search the Wilton History Room collections:

  1. Online Collections Finding Aid
    Search the Wilton History Room's collections at Connecticut Archives Online.
  2. Online Catalog of Books
    Search the Wilton Library’s Online Catalog for local history, local authors, and genealogy books shelved in the History Room.
  3. Print Finding Aid
    The Circulation Desk and the Wilton History Room have print finding aids. These are no longer kept updated, however, and do not reflect more recent accessions. .
  4. History Room Staff and Reference Librarians
    If you have any trouble with the online system or the print register, ask History Room staff or a reference librarian for assistance.
IMG_3485.jpg

Maps and Books Available for Purchase

The History Room has local history books, booklets, and reproductions of old maps available for purchase, including:

  • Maps of houses and residents, from 1856, 1867, 1909, 1922, 1935, 1937, and 1950
  • Cannondale: A Connecticut Neighborhood (1987)
  • Eighteenth Century Dwellings (1975)
  • Nod Hill, Wilton, Connecticut: Reminiscences (1996) by Norman Boas
  • The Wilton Library: The First Hundred Years (1995)
  • Wilton Connecticut: Three Centuries of People, Places, and Progress (2007) by Robert H. Russell
  • Wilton Localities (1940)
IMG_3615.jpg

Support the Wilton History Room

Please consider supporting the Wilton History Room in its ongoing mission to protect and share our local history. Donations fund the purchase of archival quality storage materials – such as acid-free, reinforced boxes - that ensure our unique photographs, fragile documents, and rare books can be made available to the public today, while remaining safely preserved for the future.

To Volunteer

Email us at wiltonhistory@wiltonlibrary.org or call 203-762-6330 to inquire about volunteer opportunities.

To Make a Donation

Donate via check payable to the Wilton Library Association or to the Wilton Historical Society, just add “Wilton History Room” at the bottom in the “For” line

Online donations are also welcomed. Gifts should indicate “ Wilton History Room” and may be made at:

Wilton Library Secure Donation Form (write-in "Wilton History Room")
Wilton Historical Society’s Secure Donation Page (choose Honor Someone Special and write-in Wilton History Room)

Photocopying, high-resolution scanning, and photographic reproduction can be arranged for most Wilton History Room items.

The Wilton Historical Society’s WHS Image Production Agreement apply to Wilton History Room items owned by the WHS.