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Welcome to your free bi-weekly newsletter from Connecticut Explored with the latest stories, the newest Grating the Nutmeg podcast, programs and exhibitions from our partners to see/watch this month, and more!
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Join the nonprofit Histoury on their Authors, Actors, and Artists tours this May in Redding and Darien! Each tour will uncover a great collection of historic homes that once belonged to these creatives. Several INTERIOR HOME TOURS along the way! Learn about a variety of historic architectural styles from the colonial era through the 20th century as we also discuss the accomplishments of these notables that span generations of American creative expression: colonial authors, children's book illustrators, and cartoonists in Redding; painters, poets, and a puppeteer in Darien; and more! SPACE IS LIMITED, book at www.histoury.org.
The Veterans History Project on the Connecticut Digital Archive
Brian Matzke comanages CCSU’s Veterans History Project, a collection of over 800 interviews with veterans that also includes digitized photographs, documents, and other relevant materials. CCSU is one of the largest archival partners of the national Veterans History Project (VHP). In his article about the project, Matzke discusses VHP and CCSU’s current transitional period while highlighting some memorable anecdotes and stories from the archive. The Connecticut Digital Archive (CTDA) is helping VHP preserve these interviews in a timeless, easily accessible format.
One of the anecdotes Matzke includes is about Sergeant Ray Weihause, a World War II veteran who illustrated a collection of comics about Ethel Smith, the Army nurse who helped treat him for a leg injury. He chose to illustrate her as a thank you for breaking him out of a foul mood. The “Nurse Ethel” comics are one example of the many stories, documents, and interviews that are recorded and saved by the Veterans History Project at CCSU.
Anyone who is interested is encouraged to search the collections at webapps.ccsu.edu/vhp/Search.aspx
Read the entire story with your Connecticut Explored subscription.
From an Underground Prison to the Boundless Sea: Using Digital Tools to Trace the Lives of New-Gate
Authors Glenn W. Falk and Ava C. Caudle discuss the efforts being made to preserve the history of Old New-Gate Prison and Copper Mine, a National Historic Landmark in East Granby. In 1773, legislation passed to make the old copper mine into America’s first state prison. This enabled a transition away from corporal punishment and the death penalty but started spreading the roots of mass incarceration and unpaid labor. The prisoners were treated harshly, made to work by day and kept in a dark cavern at night.
The Public Humanities Project at Trinity College is currently identifying more people who were held at New-Gate and adding information about them to a multifaceted digital database and website.
Falk and Caudle quote Morgan Bengel, New-Gate’s curator and side administrator as saying,
“[New-Gate’s history is] so dark and complicated that it is important to hold the micro and macro history in balance… Embracing the individual stories of specific people incarcerated at New-Gate is just as crucial as understanding the historical significance of the evolution of crime and punishment.’”
This digital project provides opportunities for students to participate in real-world research and work together to interpret and present the information to the public, creating something of lasting value for the students and the community.
Read the entire story with your Connecticut Explored subscription.
The Latest From Grating the Nutmeg
Connecticut Industries Unite for WWII Victory: Pratt, Read & Co Gliders
In this episode, we uncover a Connecticut World War II story that features airplanes without engines. Sounds crazy? You’ll learn how these engineless gliders helped beat the Nazis. We will also hear from the author of a new book that details the role that over 45 Connecticut companies played in producing the ammunition, weapons and machines that the United States needed as part of the massive war effort during World War II.
The guests for this episode are Connecticut author Sharon Cohen and Melissa Josefiak, Executive Director of the Essex Historical Society. Cohen has authored several books. Her new book Connecticut Industries Unite for WWII Victory was published in 2023 and placed second in the 2024 New England Book Festival. The Essex Historical Society has new publications on the three Essex villages-Ivoryton, Centerbrook and Essex, where much of today’s story takes place.
Listen: Connecticut Industries Unite for WWII Victory: Pratt, Read & Co Gliders
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Programs and Exhibitions to Enjoy This Month
War of the Words
May 11, 2024 | Starts at 6:00 PM | Noah Webster House and Zoom
You are invited to the annual fundraiser supporting the Noah Webster House & West Hartford Historical Society! Enjoy a word-based game show featuring celebrity contestants and hosted by Merriam-Webster Dictionary's Peter Sokolowski! Watch from home for free, or be a part of their live studio audience and experience live music and wine tasting. Take part in their online auction here.
Cost: Online Game Show Ticket - FREE; Studio Audience Party - $50
Click here to register for War of the Words
Jane’s Walk Connecticut
May 4, 2024 | All Day | Various Locations
Jane’s Walk is a movement of free, citizen-led walking tours inspired by Jane Jacobs. The walks get people to tell stories about their communities, explore their cities, and connect with neighbors. Several locations will have post-walk events!
Locations of Note:
Windham Center’s Historic Greens: 2:00 PM, starting at Windham Inn, 20 Scotland Road, Windham. This tour showcases the built history, the development of Windham Center, its designation as a historic district, and life in the village today.
Hartford Changes Around the Atheneum: 12:00 PM, starting at the junction of Atheneum Square and Main Street outside the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford. The tour will explore the evolution of the Wadsworth Museum block and the surrounding streets.
Cedar Hill, Hartford: 10:00 AM, starting at the flagpole at the end of the Cedar Hill Cemetary’s entrance drive. The walking tour showcases the art, history, and natural beauty that makes this rural cemetery so special.
See all locations and sign up here.
New Haven as Model City
May 5, 2024 | 2:00 PM | New Haven Green
An additional Jane’s Walk! The starting location is the flagpole in the center of New Haven Green. Since its beginning, New Haven has viewed itself as a model for other cities to follow. Starting from the original central New Haven Green, the walk will explore within a few blocks the successes and shortcomings of city planning efforts, through the lens of Jane Jacob’s love of cities.
Native American Life in Lebanon
Sunday, May 5 | 4:30 PM | Lebanon Historical Society
Join Lebanon Historical Society for a presentation by Connecticut State Archaeologist, Sarah Sportman on "The Indigenous History & Archaeology of Connecticut: The View from Lebanon."
Editor’s Picks
Want to explore the topics featured in this edition of the e-Newsletter? Check out these stories from the archives.
“Old New-Gate Prison: Connecticut’s First — and Most Celebrated — Counterfeiter,” Connecticut Explored, Winter 2008/2009.
“Escape From New-Gate Prison,” Connecticut Explored, Summer 2006.
“Pratt & Whitney: Dependable Engines Prepare for War,” Connecticut Explored, Fall 2020.
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