When was the town founded and by whom?

According to the Darien Historical Society, which helped in preparing this section of the Answer Book, the first residents of this area were the Siwanoy Indians, a generally peaceful people who lived by fishing, hunting, and tending their cornfields. In 1640 they sold a piece of land, where the Rippowam River met Long Island Sound, to New Haven Colony. Settled by 28 families, it became part of Stamford.

The property’s eastern boundary was Pine Brook, today called Goodwives River. In only a few years the settlement grew to 59 families, and they began to look for more land. They struck a deal with Piamikin, chief of the Roatons, for a tract of land between Pine Brook and Five Mile River, which includes the Tokeneke section of Darien. The price was four coats and some tobacco.

The first roads were cut in 1700 and the first school district was set up in 1703 in Noroton. Small houses began to be built near Gorham’s Pond. In 1708 Richard Scofield and Thomas Youngs were granted a permit to erect a gristmill and dam at the mouth of Pine Brook. It was known as Scofield’s Mill and later Clock’s Mill and Landing, after Scofield conveyed the property to his German son-in-law, John Klock. Captain George Gorham bought the mill in 1740, and it remained in the Gorham family for nearly 200 years. The area was still known as Clock’s Landing well into the 19th Century, when the name Ring’s End began to appear in the land records.

By 1737, this area was known as Middlesex Parish. That was the year the Middlesex Ecclesiastical Society was established, and by 1744 a meetinghouse was built. By 1772 the stagecoach was making regular trips, every two weeks, along the country road, which was the main highway connecting New York and Boston. Its path roughly corresponded to today’s Post Road.

During the American Revolution, local Tories frequently raided Middlesex Parish, and on July 22, 1781, they disrupted services at the meetinghouse and captured 48 men, including the minister, Dr. Moses Mather, and took them across the Sound. Dr. Mather and 26 of his parishioners spent five months in British prisons in New York City before they were able to return home.

After the war, people turned their energies to opening a Turnpike Road (now the Post Road) in 1807, and establishing daily mail service. Schools and shops were built, and by 1820, Middlesex Parish was turned loose from Stamford and renamed Darien.

Growth continued as the New Haven Railroad came through in 1848, and commerce began to shift from the harbor to the railroad station at the Post Road crossing. Until the advent of the railroad, Darien was a small, rural community of about 1,000 farmers, shoemakers, fishermen, and merchants engaged in coastal trading. Ensuing years would see an increase in population with the arrival of immigrants from Ireland and later from Italy.

In 1864 during the Civil War, the first home for disabled war veterans and soldiers’ orphans in the United States was built at Noroton Heights, named after its founder, Benjamin Fitch of Darien. The end of the war brought a building boom, and on what had once been farmland sprouted homes for prosperous businessmen and local merchants. A number of well-to-do New Yorkers discovered Darien’s picturesque shoreline and built summer homes in Tokeneke, Long Neck Point and Noroton. In 1897, the Stamford Street Railway inaugurated a trolley service through Darien that lasted until 1933.

Darien was still a small town of a few thousand people in 1914, even though there were already a few hardy commuters here who taxied by surrey from home to station.

After World War II, new streets and developments sprang up. The town center grew steadily along with the population. By the mid-1950’s the Connecticut Turnpike came through the town. General prosperity and growth continued until the population leveled off around 20,000 by 1970.

Where did the name come from?

The history of Darien’s name, adopted in 1820, is murky. The town was originally to be called Bellville, after Thaddeus Bell, an early founder. Members of the historical society think the town was named after the Isthmus of Darien in Panama.

What are some historic points of interest?

The Bates-Scofield House Museum on Old Kings Highway North is owned by the Darien Historical Society, which oversaw its restoration in 1964. The house, built around 1736, is a saltbox, featuring a massive central chimney, large fireplace and beehive oven. It is filled with 18th and 19th Century furnishings. An herb garden adjacent to the house is tended by the Darien Garden Club. There are tours of the house from 2 to 4 on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Call 655-9233 for details.

Built in 1778 on Brookside Road by Deacon Joseph Mather, the Stephen Mather House is named for one of his descendants who was instrumental in establishing the National Park Service in the early 1920’s. It has been home to members of the Mather family ever since.

Also of interest are two cemeteries that date from the 18th Century. In the Mather cemetery, which is near the Stephen Mather house, are buried many members of the Mather family. Many members of the Bates family are laid to rest in the Bates Middlesex cemetery behind the Masonic lodge on the Post Road.

Is any place in Darien on the National Register of Historic Places?

Yes. On the National Register of Historic Places are the Bates-Scofield House Museum; Meadowlands, home of the Darien Community Association; and the Stephen Mather House.

What are the oldest houses in town?

The distinction of being the oldest surviving house in town is the Pond Weed House on Post Road, which dates from 1696. The Jonathan Bates house, which dates from 1705, is one of several 18th-century houses throughout town.

What is the role of the Darien Historical Society?

The historical society collects and preserves materials of local historical value. It also educates the community about its heritage through its art and architecture, oral remembrances, and public programs.

The historical society has offices at the Bates-Scofield House Museum and can be reached Tuesday, 9 to 2; Wednesday and Thursday, 9 to 4; and Friday, 9 to 2; at 655-9233. The society maintains a Web site at historical.darien.org.

Are there any town histories?

The Darien Historical Society keeps town histories at the Bates-Scofield House.

Are there any historic districts in town?

The only historic district in town is along Boston Post Road, which includes the Bates-Scofield House and the old Congregational Church.

Does Darien have a town historian?

Yes. Marian Castell is town historian. One of her duties is to oversee the placement of plaques on homes of historic significance. She is also involved in examining old homes slated for demolition, to determine whether or not they should be preserved.

Do any laws protect old houses?

Since the early 1990s, Darien has had a demolition delay ordinance. Before any structure more than 50 years old is demolished, a legal notice must be published to that effect and a 90-day waiting period is imposed to give anyone who might want to save either the building or its contents time to negotiate with the owner. The law, ultimately, does not prevent anyone from tearing down an old building.