East Hartford History

The part of the land Known as East Hartford was once inhabited by the Podunk Indians, in 1635 the town saw its first permanent colonists when Thomas Hooker and his followers came from Cambridge, Massachusetts to found Hartford. The east side of the Connecticut River was at that time part of Hartford.  Initially settled about 1640, early settlers included William Goodwin, Thomas Burnham and William Pitkin.

The first petition by residents to establish a separate Town aprt from Hartford was rejected by the General Assembly in 1726. Several more petitions were submitted between that year and 1783, when the Assembly at last gave its approval to the incorporation of East Hartford. The Town then received its Charter from the State of Connecticut on the land area taken from the City of Hartford.

Today, the Town of East Hartford is governed by a strong Mayor form of government. The Charter empowers the Mayor to govern the Town in cooperation with an elected nine-member Town Council and Town Treasurer. The Chairman of the Town Council is also the Deputy Mayor, and his powers include the power to approve and adopt the Annual Budget, the power to enact ordinances, the power to fix penalties and fines, and the powers of subpoena and investigation.

History of the East Hartford Town Seal

Following the 1877 Connecticut Statute requiring each town to adopt a seal, East Hartford Town Council voted, on October 22, 1929, "That until otherwise ordered by the Council the seal of the Town shall be circular in form containing in the center the word 'seal' surrounded in circular form the words, 'Town of East Hartford, Connecticut'."

Town officials later decided to adopt a seal with greater artistic appeal, and on April 21, 1930, "Voted: That the resolution passed on the 22nd day of October, 1929 prescribing a form of seal for the Town of East Hartford is hereby rescinded and from this date the seal of the Town shall be as follows, to wit: It shall be circular in form containing an embossed composite design showing the East Hartford Bridge and the Bridge Road connecting the same with Main Street, with the Congregational Church at the corner, together with a reproduction of the Meeting House formerly standing on the South Green where its site is now marked by a commemorative monument; containing also the words 'Incorporated 1783', 'Carpe Diem' and the word 'Seal' all surrounded by scroll work enclosing the words 'Town of East Hartford, Connecticut'."