FRIENDS OF TOPSMEAD STATE FOREST

Friends of Topsmead State Forest

Discover a hidden treasure in the Litchfield hills of Connecticut

Quick Links

Covid-19 Guidelines for State Forests
Topsmead Visitor Information and Trail Map
CT Dept of Energy & Environmental Protection

Volunteer Opportunities: Gardens, Bird Tours, Educational Programming, and more!
Tree Renewal Fund
Memorial Tree Program
Ecology Trail Map (download pdf file)

If you enjoy our newsletter and Topsmead, please consider becoming a member or making a donation. We rely on these funds for our projects and programs.

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In 1917, Edith Morton Chase received a gift from her father, 16 acres of pristine woods in the Litchfield hills. Today, Topsmead is a 510 acre state forest, gifted from Ms. Chase in 1972 to the citizens of Connecticut to enjoy and preserve. Her legacy includes diverse landscapes, including bike and nature trails, formal gardens, unique bird habitats, and a meticulously crafted English Tudor style cottage well appointed with her international collection of art and antiques. ...more

Our Mission

Friends of Topsmead State Forest (FTSF) is a volunteer non-profit 501(c)(3) organization whose purpose is to work with the State of Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP) to provide programs and activities to promote, preserve, protect, and maintain the history, heritage and environmental integrity of Topsmead, thereby supporting the wishes of Edith Morton Chase as put forth in her will.

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This documentary film chronicles the history of Topsmead, the summer estate of Edith Morton Chase, through archival photographs and beautiful film footage. The 20 minute film also features interviews with Topsmead historian Jerry Geci, and with Robert Orintas, the son of Miss Edith's chauffeur, who for several decades spent his summers there.

Topsmead Events
Scroll down for a listing of all our events!

2021 Chase Cottage Tours

Please note that masks are required. Tours are offered Saturday and Sunday the 2nd and 4th weekends of June, July, August, September concluding Columbus Day weekend in October. Tours of the downstairs rooms begin at noon and are offered on the hour and half-hour until the last tour at 4:30pm.
First come, first served.To ensure physical distancing, each tour is limited to 6 masked people. Thank you for understanding and taking these precautions this year.

Lectures on the Lawn

Our popular nature and Topsmead history Lecture Series returns! The events are free and take place outside on the lawn behind Chase Cottage unless otherwise indicated. Bring a blanket or lawn chair for comfort. Please check back here updates.

by Margaret Hunt

Here Comes Autumn! September 2021

September is an in-between-the-seasons month at Topsmead. Summer is attempting to hang on, but the raspy cricket sounds that fill the nighttime hours are already announcing Autumn’s intention to be here soon. According to New England Today magazine, “Cricket music is to September what peeper music is to April and May — an unequivocal sign of the times.”

Autumn’s tangy scent of earth and dried leaves is taking the place of the fresh floral scent of summer. The full hi-wattage color of the summer flowers in the carefully tended north and south gardens at each end of Miss Edith’s house and the butterfly garden’s come-hither blossoms that been attracting pollinators all summer are fading. The duskier Autumn colors of yellow goldenrod, bronze autumn sedum, and white asters are making their appearance. -read complete Musings essay-

Keep Topsmead in mind when shopping on Amazon. Click HERE to set "Friends of Topsmead State Forest" as your default AmazonSmile charity and Amazon will donate 0.5% of your purchases to Topsmead.