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Around the State: Manchester
 Just off of I-384, the Case
Mountain recreation area is a popular
spot for hiking, mountain biking, and fishing for Manchester residents and others in the
region. This secluded natural landscape is in fact a part of Manchester's industrial age, the legacy of
the two Case brothers, inventors and paper-mill operators who bought up a large
parcel of land around the time of the Civil War.
In addition to the paper mills and their own mansions,
the Case brothers built ponds for water power, carriage paths, tennis courts,
and a rustic lodge. The park, laid out by A. Wells Case, reflects the Victorian
emphasis on healthy, leisurely pursuits that was in counterpoint to that
industrializing era. The original park plan was intended to provide access to
an otherwise natural and undisturbed landscape. It represents one of the first
major land conservation efforts in the Hartford
area.
The Town of Manchester,
recognizing the value of these open space lands, began to acquire them from the
Case family in the early 1970s. The most recent acquisition is a two-acre
parcel on the southern shore of the Upper Case Pond, containing the lodge. Historian
Rachel Carley has described the structure in her nomination for the Case
Brothers-Highland Park Historic District, which is being considered by the
State Historic Preservation Office:
Of particular significance is the c.1918 Dennison
cabin, fashioned of salvaged timber from the Highland Park property at the time of the
chestnut blight. The cabin is a relatively rare and excellent Connecticut
example of a type based on the lodges of the Adirondacks
and other mountain regions where the fashion for "rusticating" in the
wilds developed as part of a national "back to nature movement."
Rough stone and bark-covered timbers fit naturally into the backwoods settings
and enhanced the sense of adventure that went with "camping out."
Several parties have expressed interest in
protecting and preserving this unique building. The Town Building Reuse
Committee, the Manchester Land Trust, and other groups have explored various
possibilities for the building's use. The Town's near-term objective is to
repair the cabin so it can be occupied by a caretaker. The longer-term
objective is to open the cabin for public use, perhaps for meetings,
receptions, classrooms, and a refreshment and rest area for use by hikers,
bikers, and others enjoying the recreation area.
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