Preston City is a village and the original town center of the town

New England town

The New England town is the basic unit of local government in each of the six New England states. Without a direct counterpart in most other U.S. states, New England towns are conceptually similar to civil townships in other states, but are incorporated, possessing powers like cities in other...

 of Preston

Preston, Connecticut

Preston is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 4,688 at the 2000 census. The town includes the villages of Long Society, Preston City, and Poquetanuck.-History:...

, Connecticut

Connecticut

Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...

. The core of the village around the junction of Old Northwest Road and Route 164 is designated as the Preston City Historic District

Preston City Historic District

Preston City Historic District is a historic district that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It includes the center of the village of Preston City in the town of Preston, Connecticut. The district is located along Old Shetucket and Amos Roads, which, prior to the 1930s, were...

, a historic district

Historic district (United States)

In the United States, a historic district is a group of buildings, properties, or sites that have been designated by one of several entities on different levels as historically or architecturally significant. Buildings, structures, objects and sites within a historic district are normally divided...

 that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

.

Historically, Preston City was one of three distinct settlements in the town, the others being Poquetanuck

Poquetanuck

Poquetanuck is a village in the town of Preston, Connecticut, located near the banks of a bay known as Poquetanuck Cove that opens to the Thames River...

 and Long Society. The first Congregational church

Congregational church

Congregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing Congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs....

 in Preston City was founded in 1698.

Preston City prospered in its early years when the town of Preston was an important supplier of agricultural products to the port of Norwich

Norwich, Connecticut

Regular steamship service between New York and Boston helped Norwich to prosper as a shipping center through the early part of the 20th century. During the Civil War, Norwich once again rallied and saw the growth of its textile, armaments, and specialty item manufacturing...

 on the Thames River

Thames River (Connecticut)

The Thames River is a short river and tidal estuary in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It flows south for through eastern Connecticut from the junction of the Yantic and Shetucket rivers at Norwich, to New London and Groton, which flank its mouth at the Long Island Sound.Differing from its...

, from which local farm goods were shipped to other ports on the east coast. The period of greatest prosperity was between the American Revolutionary War

American Revolutionary War

The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...

and about 1830, and is reflected in the architecture of the homes built by successful local farmers and merchants.