Take a look at Harkness Park:
This is a place to visit and reflect. You'll feel like your back in the early twentieth century, say 1920s.
It's pretty big, enough to feel free in. There is more to it than what the picture shows. Open grass and gardens
is how I describe it. In the spring, locals fly kites. You won't see vendors there, so bring your own food. It's never been
crowded when I've gone there. A few times a year, there are official events like music and plays. The mansion is open for tours
sometimes and it is rented for weddings and such.
The rich owners died and left the place to the state. They were special people, nice folks, philanthropists. Harkness is the family name,
so you could google than and learn more about them. But here are a few places where you can start. Friends of Harkness at http://www.harkness.org/
are the folks in charge of taking care of the place. Some dude writing for the Hartford Courant wrote a piece that mentions some of the Harkness history,
check that out here. Mary Stillman Harkness did some nice things for Connecticut College, check that out. And there are plenty of snobs with the Harkness
sir-name that want to be known, they aren't mentioned here. I should mention the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, who has played a
part in trying to save Harkness Park from criminal neglect. That link has some history on the place as well. Here is a picture of what they've done with the
mansion.
If your in that area, be sure to visit these other places that aren't more than 20 minutes away from Harkness Park: