The John H. Thompson Memorial Library and Archives are open to the public for research purposes from January 2 to December 15, Tuesday through Friday, from 1 to 4 p.m. or by appointment.

The Torrington Historical Society maintains an interest in acquiring more information on and photographs of Torrington families, businesses, and industries in pursuit of its mission to collect and conserve materials pertaining to local history.

With over 2000 books and pamphlets in its collection, the library's titles focus is on works of Torrington history, as well as Litchfield County and Connecticut history. Among the library offerings are Orcutt's History of Torrington, Connecticut, the 3-volume history of Torrington by Bess and Merrill Bailey titled The Formative Years, The Growth Years and The Annealing Years, the 1994 publication Erastus Hodges 1781-1847 by Theodore B. Hodges, and The John Brown Birthplace by David Ross Bennett. These titles are also available for purchase. Additional resources include the Torrington directories dating to the late 19th century and Historic Resource Surveys of Torrington's central business district or downtown, West Torrington, and the Torringford area.

The library has a number of biographical works on both individuals and families of note in Torrington history along with genealogical works compiled and contributed by local families.

The library also has an extensive collection of books about famed abolitionist and Torrington native, John Brown. Research material on John Brown and his Torrington birthplace is housed in the library archives.

Approximately 800 linear feet of storage house the society's archival resources consisting of articles, photos, correspondence and other material that document the history of Torrington and the individuals and events that contributed to that history. Divided into categories ranging from churches and clubs to military records and town government, the archives contain several special collections. Among these are account books and ledgers from 19th century Torrington businesses and issues of Torrington newspapers on microfilm and bound volumes.

Torrington's rich industrial past is well represented in the archives with particular emphasis on the Torrington Company, the Torrington Manufacturing Company, and the Hendey Machine Company. A Torrington industry from 1870 to 1954, the Hendey Machine Company is the subject of a permanent exhibit at the society and photocopied versions of Hendey machine operator's manuals are available for purchase.

Sanborn Insurance Map

The 1852 map of Torrington published by Richard Clark and Beer's 1874 Atlas of Litchfield County are among the items in the archival map collection that also contains bird's eye views of Torrington and a number of Sanborn Insurance maps.

Among the holdings in the archives is a collection of architectural drawings, most notably the 1000 sets of drawings from the Torrington Building Company. The architectural drawings collection includes the works of Torrington architects William E. Hunt and Carl Victor Johnson.

John Norton Brooks

The vast photographic collection includes daguerreotypes, photographic prints, glass plate negatives and tintypes dating from the mid 19th century to the present. These images provide researchers with a wealth of information about the people, places, institutions and events which shaped—and continue to shape—Torrington's history. Views of Torrington by local photographers such as Christie Siebert and F.O. Hills can be found in this photographic archive. Also included are several important sub-collections, among them the John Norton Brooks (1870-1941) collection of late 19th and early 20th century Torrington images and the Richard Schlott (1939-1998) collection of mid-late 20th century negatives.

The Torrington Historical Society was instrumental in the 1994 publication of the book Erastus Hodges, 1781-1847: Connecticut Manufacturer, Merchant and Entrepreneur by Theodore B. Hodges. The research material used by the author and donated to the archives forms the Hodges Collection and is made up of several thousand business letters written between 1799 and 1845, a nearly complete set of day books from 1796 to 1837, ledgers, contacts and personal letters.