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Fall 2025: Our Environment. Learn about Stephen Tying Mather, pictures from our September events, and the newest GTN episode. Don't miss out on our 2nd annual online benefit auction!
Don’t miss out on our second annual online benefit auction! The auction is the largest fundraiser of the year for our award-winning CT history podcast Grating the Nutmeg. New episodes are produced every two weeks and are free to listen to. We have over 30,000 downloads per year. We’re celebrating our 10th anniversary and counting! Our podcast is free to all listeners and to keep it free, we need to raise money for our support. This online auction is made possible by our organizational partners, our community’s businesses, and generous individuals. All purchases help keep Grating the Nutmeg accessible to all!
Auction Dates:
September 25, 2025 12:00 a.m. - October 18, 2025 11:49 p.m.
The Latest From Grating the Nutmeg
The Smith Family of Glastonbury: Hannah and Her Daughters
In this episode of Grating the Nutmeg, Natalie Belanger tells us about how two journals kept by a Revolutionary War-era girl in the Connecticut Museum of Culture and History’s collection have inspired an original work of music.
Listen: The Smith Family of Glastonbury: Hannah and Her Daughters
Like Grating the Nutmeg? Want to support it? Make a donation! 100% of the funds from your donation go directly to the production and promotion of the show.
For more information on the Smith family, visit the CT Women’s Hall of Fame, or read this excellent blog from the Library of Congress.
Protecting the Parks
Autumn in Connecticut is arguably the best season to explore one of many parks throughout the Nutmeg State. If you enjoy nature and hiking you might be surprised to learn that the first Director of the National Park Service, Stephen Tying Mather was a long time resident in Darien, Connecticut. Mather worked tirelessly to promote parks and create accessibility for the public. There are an estimated 71 bronze plaques honoring Mather’s contributions nationwide.
Grayeb writes,“At the time, national parks were not as widely known or appreciated as they are today. Partnering with railroad companies, Mather successfully secured funding and facilitated the distribution of literature promoting the parks. He knew that the more people he could get to care about the national parks, the better protected they would be.”
Learn more about Stephen Tying Mather and his dedication to protecting the parks while fueling interest and tourism in our Fall 2025 issue.
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Out and About: Celebrating a successful conference and the 18th annual Old-Fashioned Flea Market.
Connecticut Explored, Inc., The Center for Connecticut Studies, the Department of History at Eastern Connecticut State University, and the Association for the Study of Connecticut History co-hosted “Present from the Start: People of Color in Connecticut’s Revolutionary Era, 1765-1836” on Saturday, September 20, 2025 at Eastern Connecticut State University in the Student Center. Over 150 people attended with panels ranging in topics from Maritime Connections to Indigenous Communities in the Revolutionary Era.
Sponsors included The Society of the Cincinnati-Connecticut Chapter, Eastern Connecticut State University, Charter Oak Credit Union, Mitchell College, Greenwich Historical Society, The Connecticut Democracy Center, Mystic Seaport, Stowe Center for Literary Activism, The Mattatuck Museum, The Sociology Deaprtment at ECSU, The Center for Connecticut Studies, ECSU History Department, CCSU Public History Program, and the Association for the Study of Connecticut History.
Thank you to all who attended!
CT Explored staff had fun tabling at the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum’s 18th annual Old-fashioned Flea Market in Norwalk, chatting with visitors and magazine subscribers. Vendors displayed many treasures and unique items from repurposed furniture to vintage barbies, and handmade jewelry.
Check out our Explore Page for our upcoming events. Happy October!
Programs and Exhibitions to Enjoy This Month:
Buttons On!
Known as the “Button Man,” Beau McCall transforms the everyday into the extraordinary, crafting dazzling works from thousands of buttons. Buttons On!, on view October 12, 2025, through January 4, 2026, explores themes of identity, memory, and adornment while celebrating creative reuse—aligning seamlessly with environmental values of sustainability and upcycling.
McCall’s vibrant, wearable art is made from discarded denim and found buttons, giving new life to overlooked materials. His medium resonates deeply in Waterbury, once known as the “Button Capital of the World.” Visitors can connect McCall’s contemporary practice to the past through the museum’s Button Gallery, which showcases over 10,000 historical buttons—from military insignia to Bakelite to George Washington’s buttons. Whether adorning garments, accessories, or sculptural forms, McCall’s buttons serve as both material and metaphor—telling stories of place, people, and possibility. Buttons On! invites audiences to rethink the environmental and emotional power of what we wear and what we keep.
Mattatuck Museum, 144 West Main Street, Waterbury. mattmuseum.org; 860-572-0711
Reanimating the Disappeared: Discovering the Women of our Past
Too often, women’s lives are hidden or overlooked in history. Join Charles W. Wiltsie III as he shares practical methods for uncovering and reanimating the stories of women who shaped families and communities. Topics covered include: reading and interpreting historical photographs, understanding gravestones and cemetery clues, and using archival records and genealogical resources.
The Russell Chapel at Indian Hill Cemetery, 383 Washington Street, Middletown. Sunday, October 5, 2025 from 2:00 - 3:30 p.m. $5 Non-Members
Autumn at Cedar Hill Cemetery
Fall is a beautiful time to explore Cedar Hill Cemetery’s art, history, and natural beauty. Public programs continue in September and October. Join us for one of our popular walking tours, including Stories in Stone, Eternal Homes, What a Way to Go, Hartford in the Gilded Age, Fall Foliage, and Governors of Connecticut. Special events include the Mystery Scavenger Hunt and Hallowed History Lantern Tour. Program information can be found on Cedar Hill Cemetery Foundation’s website, cedarhillfoundation.org.
If visiting Cedar Hill Cemetery on your own, quiet recreational activities, such as walking, birding, and photography, are permitted. A Guide for Visitors, A Guide to Notable Trees, and a Guide by Cell Audio Tour are available for self-guided experiences.
Cedar Hill Cemetery, 453 Fairfield Avenue, Hartford. cedarhillfoundation.org; 860-956-3311
Editor’s Picks:
Leah S. Glaser, “Connecticut’s Park and Forest Pioneers” Connecticut Explored, Winter 2016-2017.
Walter W. Woodward, “The U.S. National Park Service’s Founder, Director, and Champion” Connecticut Explored, Summer 2022.
Cynthia Cormier, “Site Lines: Connecticut State Parks at 100” Connecticut Explored, Summer 2013.