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All About Hartford
115 miles NE of New York; 103 miles SW of Boston
Dissidents fleeing the rigid religious dictates of the Massachusetts Bay Colony founded Hartford in 1636. Three years later, they drafted what were called the "Fundamental Orders," the basis of a subsequent claim that Connecticut was the first political entity on earth to have a written constitution, hence the nickname "Constitution State."
Unfortunately, Connecticut's capital and second-largest city endures a drooping uneasiness it hasn't been able to shake. Visitors can't help noticing the miles of distressed housing, weed-strewn lots, and hollow-eyed office structures that radiate out from the center.
After frequent disappointments, though, hopes are rising once again. Hartford has always pointed gamely to its grand edifices -- the divinely overwrought gold-domed capitol, the High Victorian Mark Twain House, and the august Wadsworth Atheneum. Now, though, downtown is experiencing a construction boomlet, with hundreds of housing units, a couple of new hotels, and a new convention center at riverside among the results. The gracious Old State House enjoyed a 4-year renovation, and across the street, a shed has been provided for a farmers' market where noontime rock concerts are staged in summer. These efforts have encouraged new investments and the establishment of a dozen or so cosmopolitan restaurants, so most of a day trip or overnight visit can be contained within only a few square blocks.
Published by Frommer's © 2012, Whatsonwhen Ltd
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