Manchester Historical Society
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Manchester trivia! Can you answer this question?
Where in Manchester were the archway and buildings in this 1949 photograph? Try to answer before reading this hint: buildings remain, pictured archway gone.
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NEW! Virtual Tea via Zoom
Your invitation to a VIRTUAL TEA
,
Our first tea,
Monday, May 11 at 3:00 p.m.
, features a tea-time conversation with Master Gardeners Bettylou Sandy and Deb Prior, on gardening topics, past and present. For those new to Zoom -- enter the Zoom Meeting Room at 2:45 p.m. for a Zoom intro, by clicking
https://zoom.us/j/95072286386. Meeting ID: 950 7228 6386. Zoom instructions are also available right on the meeting display, or see these Zoom instructions on our website:
http://www.manchesterhistory.org/ZoomInstructions.pdf Or phone in: One tap mobile +13126266799,,95072286386# US (Chicago) +19292056099,,95072286386# US (New York)
We plan to continue hosting virtual teas on various local-history topics on
Mondays at 3:00 p.m. More info soon!
Learn about this and other "virtual" events on our
Facebook page
.
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Speaking of gardening -- the above- pictured Russell Cheney painting of Mary Cheney's garden is on a wall at the Downtown library. Mary Cheney opened the gardens to the public. They were located south of Hartford Road, in an area affected by I-384. Click the image for more info about Russell Cheney.
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Recently posted on someone else's Facebook page
Pulley
, pictured above right, from the abandoned rope tow at the former Northview Ski Slope, located near the old Nike site, near Garden Grove Road,
pictured below right. A local blogger took this photo, and there are several more, along with a map at
her Manchester blog. This pandemic-inspired, social-distanced ramble is like an archeological dig, exploring relics and landscapes of the past. Northview was the successor to our town's former skiing area at Mt. Nebo, which was drastically changed during the construction of I-384 beginning in the 1960s. More about
Northview, which operated from about 1969 to 1974.
Maybe you would like to explore some parts of Manchester unfamiliar to you? Let us know what you discover. Reply to this email or send to town historian and
e-news editor.
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Photo above, c. 1918 photo by John Knoll. These falls are a bit hidden from view -- not the ones we see as we drive along Spring Street near the one-lane bridge. Here's a short video of
how to get to Bridal Veil falls. Watch other short
videos here.
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Teensy videos on our website
Watch a
42-second video of Bridal Veil (or Wyllys) Falls, in the Highland Park section of Manchester. These falls, pictured on the right, changed dramatically in the 1980s when the dam upstream burst. The area is extremely rough and has poison ivy! In the 1886 Manchester History from "The Memorial History of Hartford County, Connecticut, 1633-1884," author J. Hammond Trumbull, L.L.D., President of the Connecticut Historical Society, said, "The romantic beauty of the Highlands is surpassed by that of few other localities in New England...the stream falls 65 feet over the rocks into the valley below...a miniature Yosemite admired by all observers." Read the 23-page Manchester portion of the
1886 history here.
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Manchester on the National Register --
We can be proud of our ten properties on the National Register of Historic Places! Our Downtown, listed on the National Register in 1996, is known as the Main Street Historic District, r
oughly, Main Street, from Center Street, to Charter Oak Street.
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Photo above by Sinch Ofiara, a 1952 view of Downtown, near the corner of Main and Bissell Streets. The State Theatre once featured an
opera series. Notice the Corner Soda Shop on the left of the theater building. More about
Downtown.
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Check out our crossword puzzles --
Want to try your luck at Manchester history facts?
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Most of the answers are on our website! Do you want to contribute a trivia question? Not too hard! But not too easy! Reply to this email or contact the
Town Historian.
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Time to jot down your thoughts about and experiences during the pandemic!
Be a part of history in the making.
The Historical Society will have a complete book for our archives, replete with stories that you contribute.
"It takes time to put current events in context, and that will certainly be the case with the pandemic we are living through, but even now, in the middle of it, we know this is a big, big deal -- for Manchester, for our state and nation, for the world.
" -- Jim Farrell
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Writers wanted...
Guess what?! I finally wrote up my own reflections on coping during the Covid-19 pandemic! It's easy and kind of fun -- to think about how life has changed, how we've been negatively affected, what benefits we may have noticed. The editor of our school's e-newsletter,
One Manchester, Jim Farrell, is calling upon us to write a 300-800 word essay, and if it's published in the newsletter, it will also be printed in a hard-bound book to be donated to the Manchester Historical Society and displayed at our museum.
YOUR OPPORTUNITY!
Don't delay!
Jim said, "We are looking for different points of view. Examples:
- A college student who's been sent home might write about the surprising appeal of distance learning.
- A waitress who is temporarily unemployed might write about using the down time to learn to cook like a pro.
- A sidelined salesman now working part-time from home decides to do some long overdue home renovation project."
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"We don't know what people might care to share but are open to anything, although we have some guidelines: There is no compensation and anything you submit can be edited for length, style, etc., but it won't be printed until and unless the writer is happy with the final version
Decisions on what to include will be made by Jim Farrell, communications director of the school district. Simply submit your contribution to
b11jfarr@mpspride.org."
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May TV show --
An informal visit to the History Center -- was filmed in 2018. You can watch the show on the Public Access website:
this month's television show. We'll visit exhibits and introduce Linda Findlay, whose mother collected Manchester memorabilia. Linda describes some of the items that are part of the eclectic donations to the Historical Society. The artifacts, such as postcards, ink blotters, newspaper clippings, and high school yearbooks, spark memories and bring up stories of the past. Some items from the collections can be viewed on our website:
Postcard collection, ink
blotter collection. The show airs at 12:00 noon and 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.
Unfortunately, the cable studio and equipment is unavailable through the end of May, so we will not be able to make new TV shows for a while.
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Below: Postcards of Center Church in 1915, and the Odd Fellows buildingClick the image for a
more postcards
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You can watch more of our history TV shows online by selecting "Manchester Program Schedule" (the second gray tab) on the
local Public Access website -- then on the next screen, type
Historical into the search box.
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Answer to the Manchester trivia question:
The picture is of Educational Square, now Bennet Academy, at the south end of Downtown Main Street. It has changed a lot over the years, but is still an educational center.
It was built after the terrible fire of October 1913. It has served as Barnard Junior High School, Bennet Junior High School, as well as its current use as an academy for all of Manchester's fifth and sixth grade students -- that is when they are in school, and not participating in online classes due to the pandemic! Pictured on the right, two photos of different buildings in the complex, which included a quadrangle.
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Above, the Barnard Building,
below, the Franklin Building. Architects were Carrere and Hastings, who also designed the New York Public Library on 5th Avenue, New York City. More about
Miss Bennet and the 1913 fire
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Membership for yourself or --
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. .
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OUR MISSION
The Manchester Historical Society educates the public about the history of Manchester, Connecticut; collects, preserves, interprets, and exhibits information and artifacts about the town and its diverse population, and advocates for the preservation of significant historic resources.
Although all our facilities are closed indefinitely, we are listing the regular hours in anticipation of the end of pandemic restrictions:
The History Center, 175 Pine Street, open Tuesday through Friday 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., except holidays. • The Cheney Homestead, 106 Hartford Road, generally open the second Sunday of the month 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. and on special occasions • The Old Manchester Museum, 126 Cedar Street, open the first Saturday of the month from 10:00 to 2:00 p.m.; closed January through April, usually reopening in May. • The Woodbridge Farmstead grounds and barn, 495 East Middle Turnpike, at Manchester Green, open the second and fourth Sundays, noon to 2:00 p.m. May to October.
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