SGC-CT066-066 · Research edition September 12, 2026
A selected, source-based research collection for New Haven and Fairfield counties. Includes credited photographs where reusable images were located, historical interpretation and links to supporting records. It is a growing inventory, not an exhaustive survey. Photographs retain their individual dates and reuse terms; images do not establish present access conditions.
The story in pictures
Southbury Training School campus
2015-05-31 18:31:19
Southbury Training School Southbury Training School
Lenore H. Davidson Administration Building at Southbury Training School
2018-06-17 10:42:31
The administration building at the Southbury Training School named after Lenore H. Davidson. The building houses the administrative offices of the Training School as well as a location of the Connecticut State Employees Credit Union.
Ernest N. Roselle School Building at Southbury Training School
2018-06-17 10:41:52
The building facing Route 172 at Southbury Training School. Is the largest building on campus and houses medical and dental units, the old gymnasiums and classrooms, as well as other day program areas for residents.
Large greenhouse leaves viewed through glass at Southbury. Plants inside the school's greenhouse appear through the window in this January 2016 photograph.
Small greenhouse structures and seed/herb display inside the Southbury greenhouse. A March 2016 photograph records the greenhouse as part of the school's working campus.
Southbury Training School was developed in the 1930s and opened in 1940 as a residential institution for people with intellectual disabilities. Its campus combined residential, educational, medical and administrative functions. The historic district entered the National Register in 1992. [CT066-S01][CT066-S02]
Although admissions ended, the institution continued operating. Its history belongs to the wider changes in disability services and the movement toward community living. Architecture alone cannot explain residents’ experiences: testimony, policy records and accounts by people with disabilities are essential complementary sources. [CT066-S01][CT066-S02]
The residential campus that opened in 1940 combined education, accommodation, medical care and administration. Its arrangement can be studied through plans and photographs, but the institution's buildings are only one part of its history. [CT066-S01][CT066-S02]
The end of admissions did not immediately end operation. That distinction matters when following the broader movement toward community living and changes in disability services. Architecture can establish how spaces were organized, while testimony from people with disabilities is essential for understanding life within them and beyond them. National Register recognition in 1992 documents historic significance; it does not endorse every institutional policy or supply the missing perspectives of residents. The collection is a starting point for bringing those different forms of evidence together. [CT066-S01][CT066-S02]
Lenore H. Davidson Administration Building at Southbury Training School
The administration building at the Southbury Training School named after Lenore H. Davidson. The building houses the administrative offices of the Training School as well as a location of the Connecticut State Employees Credit Union. Active historic institution; do not label as abandoned.
Ernest N. Roselle School Building at Southbury Training School
The building facing Route 172 at Southbury Training School. Is the largest building on campus and houses medical and dental units, the old gymnasiums and classrooms, as well as other day program areas for residents. Active historic institution; do not label as abandoned.
Large greenhouse leaves viewed through glass at Southbury. Plants inside the school's greenhouse appear through the window in this January 2016 photograph.
Small greenhouse structures and seed/herb display inside the Southbury greenhouse. A March 2016 photograph records the greenhouse as part of the school's working campus.
Includes source text where acquired. Source websites require an internet connection. OCR may contain errors; verify names and dates against the scan.
8 catalog entries
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CT066-S01 · Sources & research leads · Source reviewed September 2026
Southbury Training School: history and bibliography
Supporting source for the collection’s history, chronology and research notes. A residential campus provides evidence for the history of disability services and institutional life.
External source; the full publication remains with its publisher. The archive provides an original educational summary and a link. See the collection history for the claims supported by this record.
Credit: Southbury Training School. Cite SGC SGC-CT066-066, CT066-S01, source title, page and URL; accessed 2026-09-12.
CT066-S02 · Sources & research leads · Source reviewed September 2026
Connecticut DDS: regional services and Southbury residential facility
Supporting source for the collection’s history, chronology and research notes. A residential campus provides evidence for the history of disability services and institutional life.
External source; the full publication remains with its publisher. The archive provides an original educational summary and a link. See the collection history for the claims supported by this record.
Southbury Training School Southbury Training School
Reuse permitted under CC BY-SA 3.0; credit the creator, link the license, and identify changes. Adapted images must be shared under the same license. Image supplied at web resolution; no editorial changes to the source image. Active historic institution; do not label as abandoned.
Credit: Johnny Hirschauer / CC BY-SA 3.0. Cite SGC SGC-CT066-066, CT066-P01, source title, page and URL; accessed 2026-09-12.
CT066-P02 · Photographs · 2018-06-17 10:42:31
Lenore H. Davidson Administration Building at Southbury Training School
The administration building at the Southbury Training School named after Lenore H. Davidson. The building houses the administrative offices of the Training School as well as a location of the Connecticut State Employees Credit Union.
CC0 public domain dedication; attribution appreciated but not required. Image supplied at web resolution; no editorial changes to the source image. Active historic institution; do not label as abandoned.
Ernest N. Roselle School Building at Southbury Training School
The building facing Route 172 at Southbury Training School. Is the largest building on campus and houses medical and dental units, the old gymnasiums and classrooms, as well as other day program areas for residents.
CC0 public domain dedication; attribution appreciated but not required. Image supplied at web resolution; no editorial changes to the source image. Active historic institution; do not label as abandoned.
Large greenhouse leaves viewed through glass at Southbury. Plants inside the school's greenhouse appear through the window in this January 2016 photograph.
Modern view of historic campus; do not label as an early institutional photograph. Close-up cannot independently establish institution; source-specific greenhouse context, not patient care. Display copy optimized for the web with proportional resizing and compression. The linked repository identifies the original image. Reuse: CC BY-SA 4.0
Credit: Karl Thomas Moore / Wikimedia Commons (see source page for original provenance). Cite SGC SGC-CT066-066, ED-H2-HT-SP-007, source title, page and URL; accessed 2026-09-12.
ED-H2-HT-SP-008 · Photographs · 2016-03-02
Southbury Training School greenhouse
Small greenhouse structures and seed/herb display inside the Southbury greenhouse. A March 2016 photograph records the greenhouse as part of the school's working campus.
Modern view of historic campus; do not label as an early institutional photograph. Contemporary horticultural context; not a historical institutional interior. Display copy optimized for the web with proportional resizing and compression. The linked repository identifies the original image. Reuse: CC BY-SA 4.0
Credit: Karl Thomas Moore / Wikimedia Commons (see source page for original provenance). Cite SGC SGC-CT066-066, ED-H2-HT-SP-008, source title, page and URL; accessed 2026-09-12.
ED-H2-HT-SP-009 · Photographs · 2018-06-17
The Great Lawn at Southbury Training School
The Great Lawn in front of the Ernest N. Roselle School faces Route 172, photographed in June 2018.
Available at the linked repository; image or full record is not included in this download. Modern view of historic campus; do not label as an early institutional photograph. Reuse: CC0 1.0
