Picture Connecticut: War Memorial Turns Red For Fallen Firefighters

VERNON, CT — The next stop on the Patch Picture Connecticut Tour takes us atop Fox Hill in Vernon and the historic war memorial tower.

On Thursday, the tower turned red to honor firefighters who have died in the line of duty.

The tower was red from dusk until 10 p.m. Thursday marked the fifth year of the tribute.

Local historians tell us that, before European settlers came to the area, the Podunk Nation used Fox Hill as a lookout. During clear weather, one can see Talcott Mountain, as well as Mount Tom and Mount Holyoke.

The founders of Rockville cleared the hill of trees and used it as pastureland.

After World War I, historians tell us, the Town of Vernon and the City of Rockville desired to erect a memorial to the veterans of the conflict. At about the same time, E. Stevens Henry bequeathed Fox Hill and the surrounding area to the city and it became Henry Park .

The tower was designed by a New York architect, Walter B. Chambers. He modeled it after a 1,500-year-old Romanesque tower near Poitiers, France. It was constructed by the WPA from 1937 to 1939, according to local historians.

The total cost was about $71,200 with $43,000 coming from a federal appropriation and the rest from local government and individual donations.

Dedication of the memorial took place on Aug. 5, 1939.

The non-red version of the tower looks like this:

And here's the view from the back side:

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Picture Connecticut is a weekly series that features images of the state, past and present.

Here are past images:

2024

• Eagle Rock, Hebron
• The Cirque, Hartford
• The Amerbelle Spillway, Rockville
• The ECSU Gallery, Willimantic
• Great Captain Island, Greenwich
• Bobblehead Madness, Storrs
• Bobby Sands/Hunger Strike Memorial, Hartford
• Mr. Jonathan Goes To Hartford, Hartford
• The Latest Discount Airline, New Haven
• State Groundhog Gets Arrested, Manchester
• Historic Wartime Sutures, Willington
• Big Business Week In CT, statewide
• The Marketplace at Guilford Food Center Guilford
• Main Street at night, Middletown
• The Hide-and-Seek Bear, Tolland
• The MLK Mural, Manchester
• The Mount Southington Summit, Southington

2023

• All Faiths Gather At Town Park, Vernon
• Riverside Igloos, Milford
• The TPC Pro Shop, Cromwell
• The Santa House, North Pole, er, Northern Connecticut
• Mile 4 Funnel, Manchester Road Race, Manchester
• UConn Lacrosse Giving Back, Connecticut River Valley
• The Capitol Grounds Tour, Part 3, Hartford
• The Capitol Grounds Tour, Part 2, Hartford
• The Capitol Grounds Tour, Part 1, Hartford
• The Doughboy, East Hartford
• The Walt Whitman Stone, West Hartford
• The indoor bush plane, Hartford County
• The Big Pink Chair, Ellington
• The Notch, Granby
• The CT 9/11 Monument, Westport
• Vintage Gas Pump, Somers
• Tobacco Harvest, East Windsor
• Late Afternoon, Lakeside, Coventry
• Fogarea, New Haven County
• Judy Black Memorial Park and Gardens, Washington Depot
• Connecticut River Police Boat, Rocky Hill
• The first dentist, Windsor
• The Frog Bridge, Willimantic
• The World War Bridge Rapids, Putnam
• The Peeking Cow, Tolland County
• The Ivy Lacrosse Tournament, New Canaan
• The Bradley International Airport runway, Windsor Locks
• The Underground Railroad, Unionville
• The cow carousel, Ellington
• Charles Island, Milford
• State Veterans Cemetery, Middletown
• Glastonbury-Rocky Hill Ferry, Glastonbury/Rocky Hill
• The Old County Jailhouse, Tolland
• Agent Orange Monument, Andover
• The Sunken Garden, Farmington
• Lafayette Tour Monument, Vernon
• The Pinchot Sycamore, Simsbury
• Bob's Discount Furniture Studios, Manchester