History of Darien, Connecticut

The history of Darien, Connecticut, has been shaped by its location on the shore of Long Island Sound along the main route from Boston to New York City, initially with sailing ships and dirt roads for transportation, and later with locomotives and highways.

In 1902, Anson Phelps Stokes, a New York merchant, banker and philanthropist, bought the southern tip of Long Neck and built "Brick House" where he and his family lived for "many years," according to Henry Case and Simon Cooper. "During Stokes's ownership of Brick House, Andrew Carnegie occupied it several summers," they wrote. The property was later occupied by the Convent of the Sacred Heart which once ran an elite girls' school there. Sisters of President John F. Kennedy were educated there, including Eunice Kennedy Shriver and Kathleen Kennedy. On September 5, 1929, the town's theater opened with a seating capacity of 700. It attracted moviegoers from surrounding towns as well, and community events were sometimes held there. St. Thomas More Roman Catholic Church was established on September 16, 1966. Originally the home of St. John's Parochial School, the property which became the new parish originally included the school, a rectory and a convent. A fund raising campaign to construct a church building began in 1971, and the building was dedicated on October 27, 1973. In 1970, Post 53, a scout Explorer post and the town's ambulance service, began operation.

Starting around the start of the 20th century, various areas of town were developed for residential uses. Darien, Noroton and Noroton Heights were served by cars on the Stamford Norwalk trolley line which ran along the Post Road (U. S. 1). Before a track connection was made with the Conn. Co. Stamford Division in 1914, passengers had to walk across the Noroton River bridge. Through cars operated until 1935.

The Tokeneke Corp. in 1901 was one of the first companies to start offering lots and summer homes. In 1904 it built the Tokeneke Inn (later converted into a private residence) for visitors to see the area, and started the Tokeneke Beach Club in 1909 so landowners without waterfront property could be assured they could enjoy the shoreline. The company eventually went under and a property owner's association took control of the narrow, winding roads, which followed old trails and cattle paths. The town refused to take over the roads because they didn't meet town standards.

In January 1926, Noroton Shores Inc. was formed and started developing the peninsula around Nearwater Lane and the surrounding water. In early March of that year, the company dredged about from the Good Wives River on the eastern side of the peninsula. A crew of about 25 men from the Arundel Corp. of Baltimore worked 24 hours a day for about 11 months on the dredging, and a 160 feet (49 m) stone breaker was created, running eastward. Later, 300 feet (91 m) of waterfront was sold to the Noroton Yacht Club. In 1928, a second pier on the southwest of the peninsula was built, extending 300 feet (91 m). The company also provided paved roads and an water line running down Nearwater Lane, with lines on the streets branching off it. Between Salem Straits and Cedar Gate, the Delafield Estates Association was formed for property owners. The area was originally part of the Delafield family's estate, which resided there since 1859, when Edward Delafield, from New York City, bought the land. Tory Hole, a cave where Tories and criminal bands called "cowboys" would hide out, is in the Delafield area.

The Ku Klux Klan, which preached a doctrine of Protestant control of America and suppression of blacks, Jews and Catholics, had a following in Connecticut and Darien in the 1920s. A Darien resident, Harry Lutterman, was Grand Dragon in the state. The Connecticut Klan's popularity peaked in 1925 when it had a statewide membership of 15,000. The nearby Stamford Republican Party used its Lincoln Republican Club as a front for all Klan activities in the area. During the 1924 election, one of the largest Klan meetings in the state took place in Stamford and was organized by Lutterman. The Stamford Advocate published an advertisement signed by local Democrats (who relied on the Catholic vote) protesting the meeting. The Klan published an advertisement in response, noting the "un American" names of some of those who signed the Democrats' statement. Darien was a sundown town – a town that used unwritten rules to prevent African Americans and Jewish people from remaining overnight. Laura Z. Hobson's bestselling 1947 novel Gentleman's Agreement was set in Darien to highlight American anti Semitism via an unwritten covenant that prohibited real estate sales to Jews. Gregory Peck starred in the film version, directed by Elia Kazan, which won the Academy Award for best picture. Beginning the early 1980s, Darien High School and neighboring New Canaan High School took part in the A Better Chance (ABC), a program that sends about 500 minority teenagers per year to prep schools and affluent suburban high schools to prepare them to enter superior colleges.

On September 11, 2001, six Darien residents died in the terrorist attacks. All of them were at the World Trade Center in New York City. On July 11, 2006, lightning struck the Convent of St. Birgitta on 4 Runkenage Road in Tokeneke, causing extensive damage. As of early 2007 the convent was still trying to raise money for repairs and to make the building more handicapped accessible.

Boston Post Road Historic District – 567–728 Boston Post Rd., 1–25 Brookside Rd., and 45–70 Old Kingshighway N. (added 1982)
DCA Meadowlands – 274 Middlesex Road; the Darien Community Association headquarters. (added November 6, 1987)
Pond Weed House — 2591 Post Road (corner of Post Road and Hollow Tree Ridge Road), a Saltbox style home and the oldest house in town. (added November 11, 1978)
Stephen Tyng Mather House — 19 Stephen Mather Rd. (added November 15, 1966)