The area has been settled since at least the late seventeenth century.
In the eighteenth century, the Silvermine River was used for 12 or 13 mills in the neighborhood because it fell steeply enough for the water power to be profitably harnessed.
The mills included a leather tanning works, sawmill, and spool works.

Solon Borglum, a sculptor, moved to the New Canaan part of Silvermine in 1906 and built a hillside studio.
He was one of the leading figures in an emerging community of artists in the neighborhood and helped found the "Knockers Club" – so named because when they would meet in Borglum's studio and discuss their art, a lot of frank criticism came out, knocking one another's work – that later became the Silvermine Guild, one of the largest and oldest art centers in New England.
Other artists in the neighborhood included George Avison, D. Putnam Brinley, John Cassell, Richard Daggy, Leo Dorn, R. B. Gruelle, Bernhard Gutmann, Hamilton Hamilton, Howard Hildebrandt, Cornelia Ellis Hildebrandt, Frank Townsend Hutchens, Adele Klaer, E. Murray MacKay, Clifton Meek, Addison T. Millar, Sam Otis and Carl Schmitt.
The Guild operated the Silvermine College of Art, an accredited two-year educational institution, for ten years starting in 1962.

In 1899, the present Perry Avenue Bridge was constructed.
The one-lane stone bridge carries the road over Silvermine River near the Silvermine Tavern grist mill.
In the flood of 1955, water flowed over the bridge.
The span was put on the National Register of Historic Places in October 2006.
That year one of the bridge's curbstones fell into the water, and for the six months before Memorial Day weekend in 2008 the span was closed as repairs were made.
The bridge is so narrow that when at times when cars try to pass another, curbstones can be hit.
The Norwalk city government spent $350,000 in repairs, which included masonry restoration, new railings, repaving and further narrowing so that drivers would not be tempted to try to pass.
A parade with antique cars was held to celebrate the reopening of the bridge.
The area has been settled since at least the late seventeenth century. In the eighteenth century, the Silvermine River was used for 12 or 13 mills in the neighborhood because it fell steeply enough for the water power to be profitably harnessed. The mills included a leather tanning works, sawmill, and spool works.
Solon Borglum, a sculptor, moved to the New Canaan part of Silvermine in 1906 and built a hillside studio. He was one of the leading figures in an emerging community of artists in the neighborhood and helped found the "Knockers Club" – so named because when they would meet in Borglum's studio and discuss their art, a lot of frank criticism came out, knocking one another's work – that later became the Silvermine Guild, one of the largest and oldest art centers in New England. Other artists in the neighborhood included George Avison, D. Putnam Brinley, John Cassell, Richard Daggy, Leo Dorn, R. B. Gruelle, Bernhard Gutmann, Hamilton Hamilton, Howard Hildebrandt, Cornelia Ellis Hildebrandt, Frank Townsend Hutchens, Adele Klaer, E. Murray MacKay, Clifton Meek, Addison T. Millar, Sam Otis and Carl Schmitt. The Guild operated the Silvermine College of Art, an accredited two-year educational institution, for ten years starting in 1962.
In 1899, the present Perry Avenue Bridge was constructed. The one-lane stone bridge carries the road over Silvermine River near the Silvermine Tavern grist mill. In the flood of 1955, water flowed over the bridge. The span was put on the National Register of Historic Places in October 2006. That year one of the bridge's curbstones fell into the water, and for the six months before Memorial Day weekend in 2008 the span was closed as repairs were made. The bridge is so narrow that when at times when cars try to pass another, curbstones can be hit. The Norwalk city government spent $350,000 in repairs, which included masonry restoration, new railings, repaving and further narrowing so that drivers would not be tempted to try to pass. A parade with antique cars was held to celebrate the reopening of the bridge.
Silvermine, Connecticut