The Lost Art of Letter Writing
Before email, messaging and posting to social media there were letters. At one time, a letter was the only way to bridge the gap between individuals, forge bonds, and express thoughts. Their history goes back thousands of years and letters are considered a primary source when looking at a particular period in history.
In the next few weeks we will feature letters found in our archival collection and provide glimpses into the lives and times of the letter writers.
Can’t wait? Visit our display case in the lobby of Town Hall for our exhibit on letters and those who wrote them.
Category: Warren Historical Society
Connecticut 169 Club
Author and historian Marty Podskoch visited Warren yesterday afternoon to invite audience members to join the Connecticut 169 Club and visit points and people of interest all through the Nutmeg State. Audience members enhanced the conversation by sharing their own favorite places in Warren.
Connecticut 169 Club
Sunday, January 27, 2019 Warren Town Hall
Connecticut author Marty Podskoch will read from his new book, Connecticut 169 Club, a compilation of local history
East Hampton, CT Author and Historian Marty Podskoch will share snippets of his latest book, The Connecticut 169 Club: Your Passport and Guide to Exploring Connecticut. Mr. Podskoch will guide us off the interstate and onto Connecticut backroads to meet and merge with fascinating neighbors and uncover cool curiosities tucked into the 169 towns and cities in the Nutmeg State. WHS Vice President was Warren’s contributor. Bring your own anecdotes to add to a lively discussion.
Refreshments and book signings will follow the talk.
Veterans of the French and Indian War
The Seven Years’ War was the first world war with armies and naval forces engaged in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Caribbean. Called the French and Indian War in the colonies, it was the greatest military challenge faced by the Connecticut colony between the time of King Philip’s uprising and the American Revolution.
Jonathan and Ann Filer Sackett sent two of their sons into the conflict. 28 yr. old Jonathan Sackett served for 2 months under Captain James Peck of New Haven in the Fall of 1755 and his younger brother, Reuben, who served in the company of Capt. John Marsh’s Company of Litchfield for the relief of Fort William Henry in August 1757.
Warren in the Revolutionary War
Twenty eight veterans of the Revolutionary War are buried in Warren’s Old Cemetery, but many other Warren men served. At least one fell in the Siege of Fort St-Jean, 12 miles southeast of Montréal, and never returned to Warren. Major Eleazer Curtiss who enlisted in May of 1775 was at the Battle of Ticonderoga and at the Battle of Ridgefield where he caught General David Wooster as he fell mortally wounded from his horse. It was Major Curtiss who recommended the newly incorporated town take the name of Warren as the namesake of the fallen hero, Joseph Warren.
He served as Warren’s very first First Selectman.
Our Year in Review
If you’ve been wondering what the Warren Historical Society has been up to in 2018, stop by the display case in Town Hall and see our year in photos. We’d love to have you join us for 2019.
Holiday Hours
The Warren Historical Society office will be closed on Monday, December 24th, Christmas Eve, but will re-open Monday, December 31st from 9 until noon.
Veterans of the War of 1812
With the Revolutionary War barely 31 years in the past, the young United States became ensnared in the War of 1812 because of her alliance with France and Great Britain’s embargo of trade ships leaving U.S. ports and the impressment of U.S. sailors into the British Navy.
William Kidney, just 18 yrs. old, probably the son of Peter & Polly Kidney, enlisted in the infantry on February 24, 1813. He served as a private and served in the northern theater. His service was short. On December 31 of the same year he died of dysentery at French Mills, NY.
The Mexican War 1846 – 1848
A border skirmish on the Rio Grande sparked the beginning of the Mexican War. It was the first armed conflict that the United States fought on foreign soil. It was the intention of President James Polk to extend the borders of the United States to the Pacific Ocean and at the conclusion of the war, the new territories of the United States included nearly all of present-day California, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico.
A career soldier, Hamilton Hopkins, re-enlisted in October 1843 in Company E 3rd Artillery. We know he was 27 years old at the time of his re-enlistment, that he had blue eyes and brown hair and that he was an artificer or skilled mechanic. Although he was born in Warren, there is no record of his birth or his parents’ names.
Civil War Veterans
Most of Warren’s Civil War veterans served in the Second Connecticut Heavy Artillery. Known as the Litchfield Regiment it assembled in September 1862 and trained at Camp Dutton in Litchfield. Minor Strong enlisted in August of that year with his cousin, Homer Curtiss . He eventually achieved the rank of sergeant.
After his military service he ran the clover mill in the Lake District and raised a family with his wife, Lucy Curtiss.
He died in February of 1922 and his buried in New Warren Cemetery.
Holiday on the Hill
Saturday, December 1 the Warren Historical Society will be in the Community Room of the Warren Public Library.
On display will be holiday items from the Historical Society’s and private collections including antique toys and Christmas stories from long ago.
While younger Warrenites are creating their letters to Santa, have a sip of Smoking Bishop or dip into our Wassail bowl. Add to our collaborative sculpture or play Blockhead, a game created by master woodworker Larry Hendricks. Don’t let the kids have all the fun!
Warren’s Veterans
In 1898 when the Spanish American War was declared the population of Warren was 432. Three men from Warren served in that conflict. Among them was
John Andregg who had immigrated from Switzerland in 1867 when he was just 15. He farmed on Sackett Hill Rd. with his wife Anna. They had 3 children and after his death in 1918 his farm was sold to John Adlerhurst.
1918 – 2018 The Hundredth Anniversary of the End of World War I
In 1918 when Warren’s population numbered fewer than 350 more than 30 young men were either drafted or enlisted to serve in the war that was supposed to end all wars.
Howard Chappuis, just 23, the son of John and Lillian, signed up in New Milford on August 25, 1918 and, despite a previous injury that rendered him unfit for combat, served in base hospitals until his discharge as a corporal on July 17, 1919.
Halloween at the Warren Historical Society
Some ghosties and ghoulies from the Warren Church Community Childcare and Preschool came trick-or-treating last Wednesday.
Call for Volunteers
Marylyn Hendricks and Jon Garvy have been conducting and recording oral histories for the last three years. Eventually, these audio files will be available on our website, but we need help. Do you have an hour or two to transcribe one of our recordings? The content is so interesting that we think you’ll be hooked.
Can you think of someone whose memories capture some of Warren’s history? Please let us know and we’ll put them on our list of interview subjects.
You can reach us by telephone at 860-503-8545, through our website or by email at warrenhistorian@outlook.com
Warren Historical Society’s 13th Annual Meeting
Thank you all for coming.
