|
2008 Staycation1 Season ReportThe season began with the Guns of Norwich show in the spring. There was a great turnout and a lot of interest in the phonebooks that were loaned to us from AT&T for part of the "Commercial Growth of Norwich, CT" exhibit. While visitors enjoyed looking at the memorabilia from the 17 and 1800's what captured the imaginations of many was looking through the phonebooks from the 1950's and 1960's for familiar names. While some people thought they had to be sneaky to take a photo, we were happy to help others capture the page photo and other information available in the telephone books. Old telephone books are a treasure for people looking for people, addresses, advertising, immigration, and general information. In preparation for our planned library expansion of resource materials we are collecting used telephone books from the 1920's through 2008. Please leave a message at 860.887.9000 to arrange drop off or pick up. The "Commercial Growth of Norwich, CT" materials remained on exhibit throughout the season in the basement of the museum. The South Parlor was filled with memories of the "Past Celebrations of Norwich, CT." Our assistance to Vivian Zoe of the Slater Museum for her lecture/presentation series took on a life of its own as more and more information, scrapbooks, materials and memorabilia from the early 1800's to 1984. Surprisingly, the greatest interest in the exhibit was not by Norwich locals but by residents of other cities and towns. The exhibit was placed into storage at the end of July. Pam Chaplin began entering the church sermon collection into PastPerfect to make information searching easier. With permission of Director Vivian Zoe, the staff of the Slater Museum was very helpful as Pam and Jay learned not only the how-tos but helpful hints as well. This is a very long term project and anyone interested in helping is asked to contact Jay or Pam. While it was a wet season, our gardens were colorful with flowers, fragrant with the scent of herbs and filled with a harvest of squash, pumpkins and peppers. Kristy Quarto, Greg Stott and a band of friends expanded the kitchen garden to include more vegetables and herbs. It's not quite the memorial garden planned back in 1977 but we are planning on being able to include more information of the daily life outdoors during the colonial period. Wes Betler kept the identity gardens weedless and the yard spotless. But more help, hands and funds are needed. Donations of the vegetable plants from the local greenhouses come very late in the season and we would like to get an earlier start but need your help. Extra plants and funds to purchase heritage plants are greatly appreciated. Did you know area of the museum was raised 30 feet when the house was moved into its current location? That means that we have mostly sandy, rocky fill beneath the grass and we will also be needing donations of dirt and manure in the spring to expand some of the areas we would like to have controlled growth in. Changes to the inside of the museum have been small but substantial. We have been adding more and more written explanations of objects so hosts, guides and guests can tour with more facts and details at their fingertips than ever before. Georgette and Karen Jordan have been vigilant in their fight against obwebs and dust every weekend. Mommy and Daddy Longlegs have had no weekends to rest this season! 1 A staycation (or stay-cation, or stacation) is a neologism for a period of time in which an individual or family stays at home and relaxes at home or takes day trips from their home to area attractions. http://en.wikipedia.org/ |
