Author: Janet M. Conner, Avon Historical Society The Avon Historical Society has leased the Derrin farmhouse, located at 249 West Avon Road, and one acre of land on which it is situated from the State since 1996. It is open for tours during the summer months at no charge. A history of the house is detailed in a 2014 Historic Resources Inventory. A deed for the house, dated September 24, 1766, conveying the property to Lucy Page, says that “39…
Author: Meghan Buchanan Farmington, CT is the quintessential picturesque New England town. Though many have not heard its name, this little town nestled in the Farmington Valley has a rich and fascinating history. But even more interestingly, this little town had Isabella Beecher Hooker. Born in Litchfield in 1822, Isabella Beecher Hooker was a fascinating woman. The daughter of well-known preacher, Lyman Beecher, Isabella grew up in a family full of powerful and influential people. Her father,…
Author: Katherine Cotuc It was a usual busy day on January 22, 1776 for Joseph Johnson. Back in Mohegan, Johnson was living on a farm and spending most of his time completing everyday chores. He looked over his horses, worked on construction around the house, cut wood, and questioned the state of his immortal soul. Johnson was born and raised in Mohegan, Connecticut as a Christian Indian. He was baptized in a Christian church and sent to Eleazar Wheelock’s Charity…
Author: Alex Tremblay There was no place more necessary to early American life than the tavern. For travelers it was a much needed place for rest and food, and for locals, a place of fun and respite from daily life. Yet taverns were a constant thorn in the side of those trying to keep civil order or lead a religiously upright life. In a meeting of the General Court of Connecticut on June 3, 1644, representatives passed a law requiring…
Author: Samantha Kissko Various diseases and illnesses have plagued people for centuries, and Farmington, Connecticut, was not without its fair share. Disease often spread quickly in colonial Farmington. If one household became ill, chances were that several more would fall ill before anyone even had the chance to stop the disease from spreading. One of the diseases that spread the most rapidly during this time period was smallpox. Smallpox, named “The King of Terrors” by the United States’ second president…
Exploring Connecticut and the Slave Trade When: Tuesday, April 21, 12pm – 1pm Where: Connecticut’s Old State House, 800 Main Street, Hartford, CT 06103, United States (map) Join acclaimed writer and independent historian, Anne Farrow, as she discusses her new book, “The Logbooks Connecticut’s Slave Ships and Human Memory.” Farrow has spent the last decade exploring the content and the meaning of a set of 18th-century New London slave ships’ logbooks. Her book explores the Africa’s (a slave ship) three voyages in…
In September, 2014, Prof. Stan Kurkovsky sent this message to other professors at Central Connecticut State University: “The CCSU Computer Science department regularly offers senior software engineering courses in which student teams participate in design and development of software projects of various sizes and complexity. Usually, the best projects come from working with local non-profits or campus departments and organizations, rather than letting students work on projects that they would make up just for the purposes of this course. In case…
