Town Historian

In 1987, the State of Connecticut established the position of municipal historian through Public Act 87-278, introduced by Senator Thomas “Tim” Upson of Waterbury. Under Section 7-148 of the Connecticut General Statutes, all 169 municipalities were granted the authority to appoint a town historian to help preserve and interpret their unique local history.

Helen Davis (Hickcox) Benson (1889-1950) was perhaps our first (unofficial) town historian. She assiduously collected a series of eight scrapbooks which are now in the collection at the Middlebury Historical Society archives. These precious scrapbooks, covering Middlebury’s beginnings to about 1950, contain newspaper articles, postcards, poems and pictures, in addition to many original photographs taken by her husband, Ernest William Benson (1888-1966), and the content was indexed by Dr. Robert L. Rafford.

Delia (Driver) Bronson (1897-1987), perhaps our second unofficial town historian, collected much Middlebury history in loose-leaf books, also in our collection, and edited and published by the Middlebury Historical Society.

Middlebury’s first official historian was Bradford E. “Brad” Smith, who served from 1987 until 2001. In October 2001, Dr. Robert L. “Bob” Rafford was appointed as his successor by the Board of Selectmen.

As Middlebury’s municipal historian, Bob is actively involved in researching, documenting, preserving, and sharing the stories, people, places, and traditions that shape the town’s identity. He is also available to assist with historical questions from residents, students, and researchers.

Dr. Rafford has written more than 150 articles for the Middlebury Bee-Intelligencer and is a regular contributor to Middlebury Neighbors magazine. Many of his articles are available online or in the archives of the Middlebury Historical Society.

For questions about Middlebury’s history, you may contact Bob directly at 203-206-4717
or by email at president@middleburyhistoricalsociety.org.