Towers, Bridges, Forts, Tunnels, Roads, Canals, Dams, Fishways, Airports, & Ferries

Civil Engineering

I don’t think I need to write an explanatory intro for this page. It is exactly what it says it is. And it’s awesome.

Jump down to:
Observation Towers and Views
Bridges, Covered and Otherwise
Forts, Canals, Dams, Levees, & Fishways
Highways, Roads & Tunnels
Airports & Ferries

Connecticut’s Observation Towers

I love this list. At some point whilst I was building out CTMQ, I realized there are plenty of towers around our small state. So here you are.

Working with my tower-obsessed friends, Dave and Ben, we’ve come up with an unofficial official CT Tower list. Two big, towering hat tips go to CTMQ readers Ben and Dave for expanding my list and helping me out with this list.

Keep in mind that many of these require planning, reservations, some level of fitness and/or luck (to be open when you want them to be open). Very few are open all the time, and many are open maybe once or twice per year. Others require either breaking the law or nudging the edge of it. I do not condone you do either and strongly urge against it. So when you get arrested or hurt, it wasn’t my fault, you fool.

Legally Accessible Towers, Lookouts and Observation Decks

2015 DEEP Sky’s the Limit Challenge (with my sons!)

Sessions Woods Observation Tower, Burlington
Norbrook Farm Brewery Tower, Colebrook
Shell Island Tower, Greenwich
Groton/Fort Griswold Monument, Groton
Faulkner’s Island Lighthouse, Guilford
Sleeping Giant Lookout, Hamden
Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Memorial Arch, Hartford
State Capitol Dome, Hartford
Traveler’s Tower, Hartford
DEEP Western HQ Windmill, Harwinton
Mashuntucket Pequot Museum Tower, Ledyard
Lake Trail Observation Platform, Litchfield
Point Folly Observation Platform, Litchfield
Wheeler Hill Observation Platform, Litchfield
Castle Craig, Meriden
Meriden Traffic Control Tower, Meriden
Audubon Coastal Center Observation Deck, Milford
Apple Hill Observation Deck, Morris
Mount Tom Tower, Morris
Great Hollow Nature Preserve Tower, New Fairfield
East Rock Park Soldiers and Sailors Monument, New Haven
Harkness Memorial Tower, New Haven
Lighthouse Point Park Lighthouse, New Haven
New London Harbor Light, New London
New London Ledge Lighthouse, New London
Haystack Mountain Tower, Norfolk
Sheffield Island Lighthouse, Norwalk
SoNo Switchtower Museum Tower, Norwalk
Southford Falls State Park Observation Tower, Oxford
Bear Mountain giant cairn structure thing, Salisbury
Great Hollow Observation Tower, Sherman
Wimisink Preserve Observation Tower, Sherman
Heublein Tower, Simsbury
Soapstone Mountain Lookout, Somers
Stonington Harbor/Old Lighthouse Museum , Stonington
Tower on Fox Hill, Vernon
Soldiers’ Monument, Winchester
Orenaug Park Fire Tower, Woodbury

Definitely Unclimbable For Various Reasons

Remington Shot Tower, Bridgeport
Otis Elevator Test Tower, Bristol
Hubble Tower, Burlington
Canaan Mountain Fire Tower, Canaan
Ratlum Mountain Fire Tower, Canton
Cunningham Tower, Cornwall
Mohawk Mountain Sat-Com Array Towers, Cornwall
Cranbrook Tower, Guilford
Saltonstall Equalization Tower, East Haven
Quinnipiac University Clock Tower, Hamden
Cole Armory Onion Dome, Hartford
Keney Memorial Clock Tower, Hartford
Milford Memorial Bridge Tower, Milford
Camp Columbia Tower, Morris
Air Tower at West Rock State Park, New Haven
Dennis Hill State Park Pavilion, Norfolk
Tower of the No-Bull Salvage, North Haven
Stone Lighthouse, Huntington State Park, Redding
Sharon Memorial Clock Tower, Sharon
Boothe Memorial Park Clock Tower, Stratford
Waterbury Rep-Am Clocktower, Waterbury
Foster Clock Tower, Windham

Here is Dave’s hyper-extensive list of CT towers. You’ll note I don’t include them all for my own reasons (and he has issue with a couple of mine as well. All in good fun.)

Bridges

There are only two drivable historic covered bridges in Connecticut on state roads. But we have plenty of other covered bridges; some brand new, some silly, some really cool. Fortunately, as is often the case, there’s a guy “out there” who is obsessed with covered bridges and has an incredible database of almost all of them. There are WAY more than you think there are. I’ll visit the ones I deem worthwhile.

Beyond the covered bridges, Connecticut is home to several other historic and/or interesting bridges.

Historic Covered Bridges

West Cornwall Bridge, Cornwall/Sharon
Comstock Covered Bridge, East Hampton/Colchester
Bulls Bridge, Kent

Other Covered Bridges

Andover Gap/Memorial Bridge, Andover
Fountain Lake Covered Bridge, Ansonia
Countryside Park Covered Bridge, Avon
Blackwell Brook Bridge, Brooklyn
Baldwin Brook Dairy Bridge, Canterbury
Brushmill Covered Bridge, Chester
Clinton Premium Outlets Bridge, Clinton
Bobriwka Covered Bridge, Colebrook
Camp Jewell Covered Bridge, Colebrook
Covered Bridge Condos Bridge, Danbury
Crown Court Condos Bridge, Danbury
Olson’s Bridge, Deep River
Devil’s Hopyard Bridge, East Haddam
Johnsonville Bridge, East Haddam
Sanford’s Bridge, East Haddam
The Barn Yard Covered Bridge, Ellington
Lyon Farm Bridge, Greenwich
A. Frederick Oberlin Bridge, Hamden
Beacon Hill Apartments Covered Bridge, Manchester
Oak Grove Bridge, Manchester
Peckham Park Covered Bridge, Middlefield
Wadsworth Falls State Park Covered Bridge, Middletown
West Bradley Brook Covered Bridge, Middletown
Naugatuck Glass Company Bridge, Naugatuck
Churchill Bridge, Newington
Stanley Simon Bridge, Newtown
Shunock River Estates Bridge, North Stonington
Southford Falls Covered Bridge, Oxford
Stratton Brook Bridge, Simsbury
Southern Star Covered Bridge, Suffield
Worthington Pond Farm Bridge, Somers
Twin Brooks Park Bridge, Trumbull
Hank Woronick Bridge, Wallingford
The Village at East Farms Bridge, Waterbury
Seaside Sanatorium Bridge, Waterford
Harrington’s Kissing Bridge, Willington

Other Bridges of Note

Town Bridge, Canton
Blackledge River Railroad Bridge, Colchester
Lyman Viaduct, Colchester
Mill Bridge, Durham
East Haddam Swing Bridge, East Haddam/Haddam
Rapallo Viaduct, East Hampton
Bulkeley Bridge, East Hartford/Hartford
Boardwalks & Bridges of the Hockanum River Trail, E. Hartford, Manchester, & Vernon
Hole in the Wall Bridge, East Lyme
Dexter Coffin Bridge, East Windsor/Windsor Locks
The Farmington River Bridge, Farmington
Riverside Avenue Bridge, Greenwich
Gold Star Memorial Bridge, Groton/New London
Mystic River Bascule Bridge, Groton/Stonington
”The Most Beautiful Bridge”, Lebanon
Kinsman Hill Road Extension Rail Road Bridge, Lisbon
Mill Brook Bridge, Lisbon (Gone)
Billy Joel’s River of Dreams Bridge, Middletown/Portland
Milford Memorial Bridge, Milford
Stevenson Dam & Bridge, Monroe & Oxford
Ted Knight Memorial Bridge, Plymouth
The Old Drake Hill Road Flower Bridge, Simsbury
Yalesville Underpass, Wallingford
The Thoreau Bridge, Washington
The Singing Bridge, Westbrook
Oldest remaining concrete bridge in CT, West Hartford
Frog Bridge, Windham
Victorian Footbridge, Windham

Where Water Meets Land, by Bruce Clouette
Great info on all of CT’s historic bridges, by friend of CTMQ Bruce Clouette

Forts, Canals, Dams, & Fishways/Lifts/Ladders

Our historic forts probably deserve better billing than this, but… here we are.

Forts

Fort Griswold, Groton
Fort Shantok, Montville
Black Rock Fort/Fort Nathan Hale, New Haven
Fort Trumbull, New London
Fort Saybrook, Old Saybrook
Fort Stamford, Stamford

I blame my dad for instilling a fascination with canals and locks. Of course, there are no longer any functional canals in Connecticut, but the remnants of some are still with us.

Canals & Locks

Canals of Beacon Falls, Beacon Falls
Lock Number 12, Cheshire
Derby Canal, Derby
Farmington River Trail Canals, Farmington to Simsbury
Lock Number 13, Hamden
Farmington Canal Heritage Trail, New Haven to Suffield
Enfield Falls Canal, Windsor Locks and Suffield

Dams, Levees, and Stop-Log Structures

Stop-Log Exercises, East Hartford
Saville Dam, Barkhamsted
Mansfield Hollow Dam, Mansfield
Stevenson Dam & Bridge, Monroe & Oxford
Nepaug Dam, New Hartford
West Thompson Dam, Thompson
Shepaug Dam, Southbury
Oil City Dam, Windsor

Fishways, Lifts, & Ladders

Kensington Fish Ladder, Berlin
Stanchem Dam Fishway, Berlin
Supply Pond Fishway, Branford
Bunnell’s Pond Fishway, Bridgeport
Peqauonnock River Apron Fishway, Bridgeport
Leesville Dam Fishway, East Haddam
East Haven Diversion Dam, East Haven
Latimer Brook Fishway, East Lyme
Dolan Pond Dam Fishway, Essex
Mianus River Fishway, Greenwich
2 Eightmile River Fishways, Lyme
Kinneytown/Tingue Dam Fishway, Naugatuck & Seymour
West River Fishway, New Haven (Removed)
Greeneville Dam Fish Lift, Norwich
Occum Dam Eel Way, Norwich & Sprague
Mary Steube Fishway, Old Lyme
Rogers Lake Fishway, Old Lyme
Hallville Pond Dam Fishway, Preston
Harry O. Haakonsen Fishway at Wallace Dam, Wallingford
Rainbow Dam Fishway, Windsor

Highways, Roads & Tunnels

National Scenic Byways:

Other Highways & Roads

Pork Hollow Street, Ansonia
Axe Factory Road, Ashford
US 44 over Avon Mountain, Avon
Climax Road, Avon & Simsbury
East and West and West Hill Roads, Barkhamsted & New Hartford
Morning Wood Drive, Beacon Falls
Noe Place, Beacon Falls
Dumb Roads of Bloomfield, Bloomfield
Parents Way & Privilege Road, Bloomfield
Gay Head Road, Canterbury
R. Suttmiller Drive, Canton
Bedlam!, Chaplin
Bread and Milk Street, Coventry
Ohehyahtah Place, Danbury
Traitor Neighborhood
Wee Burn Lanes, Darien & Wilton
Hellgate Road, Durham
Stephen Woods Lane, Durham
Chrismis Tree Lane, East Granby
Old Gay Street, East Haven
Boston Turnpike, Eastford
Ghost Highway/The Stack, Farmington
Pennywise and Pound Foolish, Glastonbury
NY 120A, Greenwich
Random Roads, Fairfield & Greenwich
Injun Hollow Road, Haddam
Downs Road, Hamden
OK Computer Album Cover, Hartford
Fishfry Street, Hartford
Roast Meat Hill Road, Killingworth
Gallows Lane, Litchfield
Crazy Color Roads, Middletown
Route 9 Through Middletown
Pumpkin Delight Road, Milford
Bic Drive/Sub Way, Milford
Swanty Johnson Road, Montville
Pussy Lane, New Hartford
Satan’s Kingdom Road, New Hartford
Ice Cream Lane, New London
Devil’s Garden Road, Norwalk
Blood Road, Old Lyme
I-84 Plainville Dogleg, Plainville
High Street/Stoner Terrace, Portland
Eleven Levels Road, Ridgefield
Whipstick to Nod to Whipstick to Nod Hill Roads, Ridgefield & Wilton
The Lock Up, Salisbury
Beelzebub Road, South Windsor
Snake Meadow Hill Rd & Main Street, Sterling (Gravity Hill)
Hell Hollow Road & Pond, Sterling & Voluntown
Electric Avenue, Thomaston
Old Dike/Dyke Road, Trumbull
Bread and Milk Road, Vernon
Barnes Road, Wallingford
Boulevard, West Hartford
Eaton/Dix intersection, West Haven
West Lake Street, Winchester (Underwater road)
North Meadow Road, Windsor
Klan Drive, Wolcott

Roadside Signs and Vanity Plates

Gallery of ET Progressive Road Signs
Gallery of Other Roadside Signs
Gallery of CT Vanity plates

Great New York Times article on Connecticut’s love affair with naming every road section after someone you’ve never heard of.

Tunnels

Bolton Notch Tunnel, Bolton
Nooks Hill Road & South Street “Tunnels”, Cromwell
Gillette Castle State Park train tunnel, East Haddam
Art Tunnel, Farmington
Route 2 Culverts, Glastonbury
Park River tunnels, Hartford
Taft Tunnel, Lisbon
Heroes (West Rock) Tunnel, New Haven
Pitkin Street Tunnel, New Haven
Secret Yale Tunnels, New Haven
Abandoned Railroad Tunnels, Newtown
Pequabuck/Terryville Tunnel, Plymouth
Keyhole Tunnel, Vernon
Shepaug Tunnel, Washington
Hobart Welton Carriage Shed, Waterbury

Airports & Ferries

Connecticut has lots of museums fully or partially dedicated to planes and/or helicopters. You can click on the Aviation tag to see more than what’s here, for below you’ll not find too much.

Airports

Bethany Airport Airmail Arrow, Bethany
Robertson Airport, Plainville
Plane Spotting at Bradley Airport, East Granby (Closed)

Ferries

Chester-Hadlyme Ferry, Chester & Lyme
Glastonbury-Rocky Hill Ferry, Glastonbury & Rocky Hill
Bissell’s Ferry Site, Windsor