Guilford Living
 Guilford Living
Guilford is five miles in width and 12 miles in length and features 47.6 square miles. The city is flanked on the west by Branford and on the east by Madison. Both shoreline towns are suburbs to urban New Haven. This area is well served by major highways, including Interstate 95 and rail connections. One of town’s greatest assets is the beautiful, scenic shoreline with its many rocky coves and beaches. In contrast to the shoreline is the rural nature of North Guilford with scenic country roads, farms, open space, Lake Quonnipaug and Bluff Head. Home to lobster and oyster fisherman, the town Marina also provides a great view of Faulkner's Island and the Long Island Sound. Jacob's beach is nearby for swimming as well as Chaffinch Island Park for an afternoon picnic. History can be seen everywhere in Guilford, which has the third largest collection of antique houses in New England. Historic homes in the city include The Henry Whitfield House, the oldest remaining house in Connecticut built beginning in 1639; The Hyland House, a museum of early colonial life and architecture that was built circa 1690-1710; The Thomas Griswold House, built in 1774 and operated by The Guilford Keeping Society; and The Dudley Farm, a working authentic representation of a 19th century Guilford Farm. Built in 1639 as the home of Reverend Henry Whitfield, a founder and the first minister of Guilford, the Whitfield house also originally served as a fort for the community. Its massive stone walls and chimneys, steeply-pitched roof, and casement windows reflect the style of post-medieval domestic architecture found in England, rare in 17th century America and unique today. Through the years, the "Old Stone House" has undergone many changes and many families have called it home. Recreation Recreational and cultural opportunities in Guilford abound. The city offers residents use of approximately 25 athletic fields. The largest park in the city is Bittner Park with 15 acres of active recreation area and 102 acres of passive areas. The active area includes a playground, a lighted softball field, jogging/walking path, rest rooms, concession stand and more. The passive area contains riding trails, jogging trails and acres of woodlands to hike and walk. Located at the very end of Chaffinch Island Road, Chaffinch Island is a natural preserve overlooking Long Island Sound and offers numerous picnic areas, tables, grills, salt marshes, and some short trails. Chittenden Park offers wide-open space with a fully developed softball field, picnic benches, salt marshes and small un-staffed beach area that overlooks Long Island Sound. Jacobs Beach is a fully staffed public swim area for salt-water recreation. It includes a beach area for swimming and sunning. Rest rooms, changing booths and outdoor showers are available, as well as a picnic shelter. There is also playground equipment for small children and beach volleyball courts, grills, and ample parking. Lake Quonnipaug offers a large fresh water swim area, bath house, rest rooms, showers, picnic area, parking and more. The south end grass area is designated for small craft launch, such as, windsurfers, sunfish and small craft. Mill Pond Park is mainly a winter recreation area featuring supervised ice skating. This park is also used for fishing during the spring, summer and fall seasons. The Borough of Guilford, incorporated in 1815, was consolidated with the Town of Guilford by a special act of the General Assembly in 1939. At that time the borough as an entity ceased to exist. The Current Charter of the Town of Guilford was last revised in 1993 and included updating the legislative and executive functions of the town government. |
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