1. In 1776, the Committee of Safety of the Colony of Connecticut ordered the construction of a prison for loyalists and Tories during the American Revolutionary War. The prison was named the New-Gate Prison and was located in East Granby.

2. In 1839, the Connecticut Asylum for the Education and Instruction of Deaf and Dumb Persons, now known as the American School for the Deaf, opened in Hartford. It was the first institution in the world for deaf education.

3. In 1962, the Beatles played a concert at the Sport Palace in New Haven. It was their first performance in Connecticut and one of their earliest shows in the United States.

4. In 1972, the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was unconstitutional. The ruling was later overturned by the US Supreme Court in 1976.

5. In 2003, Connecticut Governor John Rowland resigned from office amid a corruption scandal. He was later sentenced to 10 months in prison for accepting gifts in exchange for political favors.