The Windham Technical High School had its beginning in 1928 when it was known as the State Trade School. In that year, the Town of Windham purchased the original building for the school on the corner of Bank and Valley Streets in Willimantic from the Goyer Manufacturing Company. Previously, it was called the Turner Silk Mill.

The enrollment during that first year consisted of 88 pupils from the surrounding area. The four original departments were Carpentry, Electrical, Masonry and Plumbing. Courses in Architectural Drafting, Automotive Mechanics, Machine and Machine Drafting were added later.

The original school day ran from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. during the week and from 8:00 a.m. to noon on Saturday. There was no summer vacation. Students received a trade certificate upon the completion of 4800 hours of training. The first class of five students graduated in 1931. Evening classes in textiles and chemistry were initiated in 1933 and were followed by apprenticeship training and evening extension courses.

Although no specific boundaries are drawn for each technical high school, students are expected to enroll in the nearest school offering the trade or technical area of their choice. The student body at Windham Tech is usually composed of pupils representing more than nineteen area Connecticut towns.

An interesting history of the school, The First Fifty Years, State Trade School 1928, Windham Regional Vocational-Technical School 1978, is available in the school library/media center.