Enfield Historical Society Inc [CT]

Description

The Enfield Historical Society is dedicated towards discovering, preserving, and showcasing the history of Enfield, Connecticut. Enfield is notable for the Thompsonville Carpet industry, the Hazardville gunpowder industry, and the Enfield Shaker Community. The society owns and operates three museums, all of which are open to the public free of charge. The Old Town Hall Museum was built as a church in 1774, and today functions both as a museum and as the headquarters of the society. The Martha A. Parsons House Museum houses over two centuries of Parsons family possessions, and gives visitors a window into the past of Enfield. Finally, the Wallop School Museum was built in 1800 and remained in service as a school house until 1949. Now, visitors can explore education throughout the history of Enfield. In addition to the museums, the society offers educational and research services to the public.

The site offers general information about the museums, genealogical research information, a calendar of events, and information about how to join the society.

Old Saybrook Historical Society [CT]

Description

Founded in 1958, Old Saybrook Historical Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to investigating, preserving, and maintaining collections in the archaeology, art, furniture, genealogy, and historical records of the town of Old Saybrook. In addition, the society works to encourage the preservation of historic sites and the appreciation of the history of Old Saybrook. The society seeks to increase the appreciation of the history of Old Saybrook through exhibits, videos, tours, and lectures.

The site offers information about current exhibits, the archives, educational programs, and research services offered by the society.

Butler-McCook House and Garden [CT]

Description

For 189 years the Butler-McCook House and Garden was home to four generations of a family who participated in, witnessed, and recorded the evolution of Main Street between the American Revolution and the mid-20th century. The house's exterior looks much as it did when it was built in 1782. Behind it is a restored Victorian ornamental garden, originally laid out in 1865. Inside are the original furnishings ranging from Connecticut-crafted colonial furniture to Victorian-era toys and paintings to samurai armor acquired during a trip to Japan. The objects were accumulated over the course of more than 125 years by members of this clan, which included physicians, industrialists, missionaries, artists, globe trotters, and pioneering educators and social reformers. The Main Street History Center's keystone exhibition, "Witnesses on Main Street," uses the Butler and McCook families' words and experiences to chronicle their neighborhood's transformation from a clutch of clapboard dwellings, taverns, and artisans' shops into a modern urban enclave of multistory steel, brick, and stone structures housing major financial, industrial, governmental, and cultural institutions.

The house offers exhibits and tours.

Bellamy-Ferriday House and Garden [CT]

Description

The Bellamy-Ferriday House and Garden embodies the dramatically different passions of two individuals. Bethlehem pastor Joseph Bellamy, a renowned leader of the Great Awakening, the emotional religious revival of the 1740s, built the house around 1754. In 1912, New Yorkers Henry and Eliza Ferriday acquired it as a summer residence. Around 1915, Mrs. Ferriday designed a formal garden with historic roses, peonies, lilacs, and other flowers. The Ferridays' daughter, Caroline, restored the house, furnished it with Litchfield County antiques, and maintained the magnificent garden, refining the property as a combination of natural and manmade beauty.

The house offers tours.

Hempsted Houses [CT]

Description

The 1678 Joshua Hempsted House is one of New England's oldest and best documented dwellings. Joshua Hempsted lived here his whole life, filling many roles, including farmer, judge, gravestone carver, shipwright, and father of nine children left motherless by his wife's death in 1716. The Hempsted House survived the 1781 burning of New London by the British, commanded by traitor Benedict Arnold. Later, it may have been a safe house on the secret Underground Railroad which aided fugitive slaves seeking freedom. Adjacent to the Joshua Hempsted House is a rare stone dwelling built in 1759 by his grandson Nathaniel. Both houses' furnishings include original Hempsted family objects.

The houses offer exhibits and tours.

Guilford Keeping Society, Thomas Griswold House Museum, and Medad Stone Tavern [CT]

Description

The Society collects, preserves and shares the history and heritage of Guilford, CT, for present and future generations. The Society also maintains and operates the Thomas Griswold House Museum, which includes a c. 1774 New England saltbox house, an early blacksmith shop, a large barn filled with farm implements, two corn cribs, and a Victorian three-seat privy or outhouse. It further operates the Medad Stone Tavern, built in 1803 by Medad Stone.

The society offers research library access, classes, tours, and educational and recreational events; the buildings offer exhibits.

Avery Point Lighthouse Society

Description

The Avery Point Lightouse, located at the southeastern end of the University of Connecticut's Avery Point campus, was built in 1943 to aid the Coast Guard station at Avery Point. Unfortunately, when the station closed in 1967, the maintenance and upkeep of the lighthouse was neglected. In 1997, the University of Connecticut considered razing the structure. This was prevented thanks to the efforts of the Avery Point Lighthouse Society, which culminated in the relighting of the lighthouse in 2006. The tower is not open to the public.

The site offers information and recent news about Avery Point Lighthouse.

Windsor Locks Preservation Association [CT]

Description

The Association seeks to encourage and educate the public and town government on the importance of preservation. Its main focus is to obtain and preserve the Historic Windsor Locks Passenger Train Station. Additionally, the Association has compiled and introduced educational programs into the school system and encouraged students to become involved in its efforts.

The association offers educational programs.