Manchester quiz.

Extra credit: Where can art-lovers find out more?

After the holiday closure, we'll be open Wednesday through Friday 10:00 to 2:00, and Saturdays 12:00 noon to 4:00. The exhibit tells the story of Manchester's past as it relates to the future. Photos, artifacts, stories! While you're here, peruse other displays, including vintage signs from former businesses in town.

Museum store: Browse and buy: Local-history books, maps, t-shirts, coffee mugs, note-cards.

Sunday, January 15 at 1:00 p.m., 175 Pine Street, meet and greet new officers of the Manchester Historical Society, President, Dennis Gleeson, and Vice President, Bob Kanehl. They'll discuss the history of the Manchester Historical Society and their vision for its future. They are interested in learning your vision for the future, too. Free and open to members and non-members. An RSVP is appreciated but not mandatory. Leave a message at 860-647-9983. Above, photo of Dennis Gleeson.

Jigsaw puzzle - Top portion of an April 16, 1975 ad in the Manchester Evening Herald.

Parkade, located at Broad Street & Middle Turnpike West. "Central Connecticut's first shopping center," says the bottom portion of the ad, which goes on to say "Long considered the home of "One-Stop Shopping," the Parkade has everything at your fingertips and free parking for over 4,000 cars." There were 44 stores at that time. More photos and a larger version of the ad: Parkade portfolio.

Open House at the Cheney Homestead

Sunday, February 12

Experience Early American lifestyle -- the 1785 homestead with period furnishings as the people experienced life at the time. The house is staged, on the first floor, in 1818. The second floor reflects 1840, with two new exhibit rooms: • "Women of the Cheney Family," and • "Ingenuity and Industry" of the Cheney family, including a re-creation of Timothy Cheney’s 17th-century wooden clock-making workbench. A $5 donation is appreciated for upkeep of the 1785 Homestead and 1751 Keeney Schoolhouse museums. The Homestead is located at 106 Hartford Road. Come for 10 minutes or stay for hours. A $5 donation is requested for the upkeep of the Homestead.

The 1896 Harper's poster at left is not from Manchester, but a great example of bold colors and clear message. It's in the Library of Congress poster collection.

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At right, History Center door.

Many activities and events are planned for 2023, including many history events both at the History Center and around the Town. See the online booklet: 23 hikes for 2023, which are free and open to the public. The Historical Society is organizing year-long lectures and activities. Read about the incorporation in this 1823 Courant; see left-most column on page one.

Upcoming events of interest to history buffs and area residents

You can watch this month's show right now by clicking Current TV Program on Manchester Public Access website. If you live in the Manchester area, you can watch it on TV, but why not just click and watch now? On TV, the show airs at noon and 8:00 p.m. on Saturdays throughout this month. "Pioneer Parachute, Then and Now” tells the story of a home-town industry started in a former Cheney silk mill building. Originally filmed in 2004, the 107-minute program interviews former employees of Pioneer Parachute: Jim Reuter, Fred Ware, Grace Tedford, and Martha Seavy. We visit the current parachute operation with Fred Towle, a WWII pilot, who bailed out of his airplane using a Pioneer parachute. The show airs at 12:00 noon and at 8:00 p.m. on Cox cable channel 15 on Saturdays, and runs on all the Saturdays of the month. The show changes each month. This Channel 15 broadcasts in Manchester, Glastonbury, South Windsor, Wethersfield, Rocky Hill, and Newington. The television show was produced by Susan Barlow and directed by Kathryn Wilson, volunteers of the Manchester Historical Society. As stated above, y\You can watch this month's show right now by clicking here Current TV Program on Manchester Public Access website.

80 years ago in The Manchester Herald

The December 30, 1942 Herald contained war news, including shortages of oil and help wanted ads recruiting war workers. There were ads for New Year's Eve parties, some with a military flair. See the whole edition: December 30, 1942 Herald, or to peruse all our Heralds, see: Index of Heralds.

Enjoy the large collection of Somanhis (South Manchester High School) and junior high yearbooks on our website. In addition to photos of the graduating seniors, these books have ads for local businesses, photos of school activities, and sometimes poetry and prose by the students. Thanking our volunteers, especially Bob Gauthier, Noreen Cullen, Jim Hall, Joshua Pruden, Dick Jenkins, Susan Barlow.

Artist Russell Cheney (1881-1945) was born in Manchester and painted in Manchester for a time, but traveled widely in the United States and Europe, creating canvases of the local landscapes, portraits, still lifes, and interiors. We can see examples of his work at Manchester's town hall, the public libraries, and the Historical Society. Russell was the youngest of eleven children born in Manchester to Knight Dexter (K.D.) and Ednah Dow Cheney. His grandfather, Charles Cheney, was one of the Cheney brothers who founded the world-famous silk mills. Russell followed many family traditions, such as graduating from Hartford Public High School and from Yale, but not the tradition of entering the silk business. He wasn't alone in this, for two great-uncles – John and Seth Cheney – were artists and engravers, and a second cousin – Charles Adams Platt – was an engraver, artist, landscape architect, and later a popular architect of grand homes and institutions, including several in Manchester and Rockville. Find lots more info about Russell Cheney on our website, or on the Russell Cheney website.

Above, Russell Cheney in his Manchester studio on the Great Lawn.

The Homestead at 106 Hartford Road, Manchester, was donated to the Manchester Historical Society by the Cheney family in 1968 for use as a house museum. It's usually open to the public on the second Sunday of the month and for special programs at other times throughout the year. For old photos and history of the Homestead, built in 1785, visit Cheney Homestead history. The replica Keeney Schoolhouse is on the grounds of the Homestead. Originally built in 1751, the schoolhouse had deteriorated so much that new materials had to be incorporated in the 1976 reconstruction.

The History Center at 175 Pine Street, Manchester, was purchased in 1999. Our offices and many collections are in this building, which is the former Cheney Brothers Machine Shop, a 40,000-square-foot building constructed in several phases beginning in 1895. For the current exhibit, it's open Wednesday through Friday from 10:00 to 2:00, and Saturday noon to 4:00. Visit: photo tour of lower level of History Center.

The Old Manchester Museum at 126 Cedar Street, Manchester, is owned by the Town of Manchester, and the Society has rented it since the 1980s. We store collections there, and open it to the public on the first Saturday of the month, May through December from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., staffed by hosts Art Pongratz and Bob Kanehl. The building was formerly a school, built in 1859, and moved to this location in 1914. More: Old Manchester Museum.

Woodbridge Farmstead at 495 East Middle Turnpike, at Manchester Green, is a charming combination of vintage buildings and a bucolic landscape. The farmhouse dates from 1830. The Woodbridge Farm and Meadowbrook Dairy once encompassed many acres at Manchester Green. Today, the house and grounds are owned by the Manchester Historical Society – a gift from the late Raymond and Thelma Carr Woodbridge, who gave the property in 1998, reserving a life use. Weather permitting, the farmstead is open for free tours and programs generally on the second and fourth Sundays of the warmer months, from 12:00 noon to 2:00 p.m. Closed for the season.

Silk Vault Building at 110 Elm Street, Manchester, was purchased by the Society in 2017. A unique building, constructed in 1920. More: Silk Vault. The vault is rented out, and isn't open to the public.

Consider a gift membership for a friend or loved one. Why join a local historical society, even if you don't live in that town? Some reasons: • support education about the history of the town • support preservation of artifacts and vintage photos • join in advocating for preservation of historic buildings and parks that make Manchester charming.

Print this online donation form and mail to 175 Pine Street. Or drop by the History Center, Tuesdays through Fridays from 10:00 to 2:00. Direct questions to 860-647-9983.

Additional ways to donate: Employer matching gifts! Direct United Way donations to the Society. Sign in to Amazon via Amazon Smile and have a percentage of your purchases go to the Society. .