by Mrs. Mary Lou Miller
The early settlers of ancient Windsor were, for the most part, an intelligent and educated class of people. Most could read and write. Schools were in session well before 1650 although our records are sketchy. In 1698, Col. Samuel Wolcott, a graduate of Harvard, was employed to teach school three months on the East side and nine months on the West side of “The Great River.” Abner Reed recorded in 1866 that there were five school districts, four along Main Street and one on Long Hill. In the early days, if a student planned to attend college, it was necessary to seek private instruction or schools as there was no public “high school.” South Windsor students had to attend high school in the neighboring towns of East Hartford, Manchester or Rockville.
In 1936, South Windsor received its first high school, Ellsworth Memorial High, primarily a gift of William Wood. After twenty-five years of serving the growing Town, a new larger, more centrally located high school was built on Nevers Road. The new South Windsor High School was opened in the fall of 1961. Due to continuing growth of the Town, an extensive renovation and enlargement of the school was completed in 1994.
Please note that despite possible inaccuracies, we will include the description of each quilt square as published in the 1995 revised and corrected second edition booklet. This second edition was published in celebration of South Windsor’s “sesquicentennial” anniversary, 1845-1995, and was dedicated to the memory of Gail Woodard, who passed away in 1994. The revised edition was compiled by Charles E. Woodward in September, 1995, with the assitance of Doris Burgdorf who provided many historical corrections.