Sunday Series: inspiring discussions

KHS Sunday Series

Our Sunday Series programs are scheduled for the third Sunday of January, March, May, July, September, November 2:00 PM (usually) at the Kent Town Hall. Since 2010, we have featured a variety of programs and presentations by knowledgeable speakers on topics of historical interest. Free admission for members; $5 suggested donation for non-members. For more information, call 860-927-4587 or email us.

2018

Click image below to see list of programs.

Two Mornings of Art: an adult art class

Two Mornings of Art: an adult art class

The Kent Historical Society with artist and educator Cheryl Moore is excited to present a two-part adult art class on two Saturday mornings. The group will meet July 11 and July 18 from 9 a.m. to Noon to create beautiful watercolor art.

Potential adult artists are invited to transform a blank paper into several beautiful watercolors in two fun mornings. Bring your creativity and we’ll supply the rest…including paint, brushes, paper, apron and cups.

Join other creative minds at the Art Barn behind Seven Hearths, 4 Studio Hill Road, Kent.

The fee is $45 for KHS members or $50 per person for non-members. Space is limited. Reservations required and available online below. PayPal payment is at the bottom of the page. For more information contact reservations@kenthistoricalsociety.org or call 860-927-4587.

Registration

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Adult Art Class



Boston Tea Party Connection

What’s The Connection Between The Boston Tea Party and Amenia Union?

At the Annual Meeting of the Kent Historical Society on Sunday October 18, 2009, at 2:30pm in the Kent Town Hall, David Parker illuminated the life of Ethan Allen’s unsung sidekick and partner-in-rebellion – Dr. Thomas Young.

Mr. Parker, who has been researching the life of Thomas Young for many years, explained how the United States very well might not be the great free country we know today had it not been for the radical thoughts of Dr. Young.

As a very youthful physician, Thomas Young, aged 19, left his home on the western shores of the Hudson River and headed east to the little settlement on the northwest border of Kent. There he found lodging at the home of Captain Garret Winegar, a prominent German Palatine immigrant. Winegar was one of the leaders of a group of Palatines who settled in this area; his descendants moved to the Macedonia section of Kent where they were involved in the iron industry. Dr. Young learned to speak the Old Dutch language, and became physician to the Palatine community.

In 1762, the erudite young doctor was asked to name the growing village in the Oblong on the New York side of the state line. He came up with the word Amenia, which he said meant “pleasing” in Latin. He lived in Amenia Union, just inside the Connecticut border, for 12 years, practicing medicine, reading voraciously and developing a rather radical and rebellious way of looking at the world.

1762 was a fateful year not only for the hamlet of Amenia but for the American colonies as well. 1762 was the year in which Thomas Young met Ethan Allen, and found in him a kindred spirit with a well developed sense of rebellion against all powers that be.

This friendship would set Young on the trajectory that eventually took him from the Oblong Valley all the way to Boston and Philadelphia – the hot beds of the brewing American Revolution. Working with radicals such as Thomas Paine, and supported by Samuel Adams and Benjamin Franklin, Dr. Young set about to ensure that the colonies could not only break away from England but also establish an entirely new order of governance in the fledgling new country.

South Kent School’s Center for Innovation

The Center For Innovation at South Kent School

Andrew Vadnais, Head of South Kent School, spoke at the Kent Historical Society’s Sunday Series program on September 18, 2011, at the Kent Town Hall. Joined by Rich Chavka, Associate Head of School, Mr. Vadnais outlined the school’s plan for the use of the 200-acre Arno farm in South Kent that the school purchased in 2010.

The Center will begin by creating environmental studies to restore the health of Hatch Pond and combine academic learning with real world applications. The program will ultimately focus on stewardship of local and global issues of environmental changes.

The farm will become a campus and lab for testing environmental applications while providing a learning experience for the challenges of 21st-century needs.

At the same time it will supply the school with organic food and alternative energy as part of an effort to become more self-sustaining and carbon-neutral by 2020. The mid-18th century farmhouse will be restored to its original condition and used as part of the daily education of the students, offering them a glimpse into the lives of early Connecticut settlers.

New sign welcomes Seven Hearths visitors

New sign welcomes Seven Hearths visitors

Grants assist KHS with several projects

The Kent Historical Society recently installed a new sign in front of its Seven Hearths museum and several new lights with a $1,500 matching grant from the Connecticut Humanities (CTH).

To qualify for the grant, the historical society had to be part of a museum development program known as StEPs-CT, sponsored by CTH and the CT League of History Organizations (CLHO), and developed by the American Association for State and Local History. StEPs is an acronym for Standards and Excellence Program for history organizations.

The sign was designed to look similar to 18th century signage. Roger Gonzales, a Kent resident and member of the Board of Trustees, helped design and install the wooden sign atop a wooden post. It is like those that would have been common in the Flanders section of town, which was where the town of Kent began in the 1700s.

“We have received many compliments on our new sign,” said KHS Executive Director Marge Smith. “The museum will be much easier to find for visitors, with such an eye-catching sign.”

Two post lights were installed to help provide more light outside of the Seven Hearths museum to help guide visitors to parking areas. Three additional lights were added to the outside of the museum and the Art Barn, which is located in the rear.

Signs and lighting were two areas of improvement that were highlighted in the 2013 strategic plan completed by the Kent Historical Society. A $1,500 CTH grant was also awarded to KHS for that project as well, to fund a consultant. Nationally-recognized museum consultant Anne Ackerson, who has extensive experience in strategic planning and best practices development, was hired to lead a committee of board members in creating a dynamic strategic plan that is helping the society to move forward in the completion of many mission-driven initiatives.

The planning process involved input from KHS members and townspeople, as well as a great deal of internal examination by the KHS board and planning committee. A variety of strategic goals focus attention on restoring and preserving Seven Hearths, the society’s 1751 house museum; on increasing the community outreach programs and community collaboration; on developing more sophisticated use of technology and on making the KHS resources better available to the public. It is a road map for the society and its board, whose members have been working hard to make the Kent Historical Society a major player in the town of Kent.

Both of these grants are the most recent of 12 grants awarded to the Kent Historical Society by CTH. A total of $31,900 has been given since 2005 to support wide-ranging Kent Historical Society initiatives. The society would not be where it is today without the support of CTH.

Connecticut Humanities (CTH) is a non-profit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities that funds, creates and collaborates on hundreds of cultural programs across Connecticut each year. Connecticut Humanities brings together people of all ages and backgrounds to express, share and explore ideas in thoughtful and productive ways. From local discussion groups to major exhibitions on important historical events, CTH programs engage, enlighten and educate. Learn more by visiting www.cthumanities.org.

The Connecticut League of History Organizations (CLHO) builds connections among those who preserve and share the stories and objects of our past. The CLHO encourages and supports the activities of historical organizations throughout the state, promotes professional standards, serves as a network for the exchange of information, and advances historical interests at the state level. For more information, go to www.clho.org

Kent Iron Furnace Hike

Twenty three join KHS on Kent Iron Furnace hike

The Kent Historical Society took interested area residents to the actual site of the Kent Iron Furnace Saturday, July 26 for a hike on the trail created by the State of Connecticut’s Office of Culture and Tourism and the Connecticut Antique Machinery Association.

The furnace is located on the site of the Eric Sloane Museum and the trail is highlighted with a number of pictorial markers that explain special sites on the property.

Executive Director Marge Smith shared her extensive knowledge of the site and how iron was created by pointing out the different areas, such as where the dam, water wheel and race were and remnants can still be seen today. Children stood on a salamander and learned what that was – waste product from when a furnace blast didn’t actually go quite right.

There were 23 people of varying ages that joined the hike, including one woman from Danbury who made the special trip to educate herself on the area’s historic ties to the iron industry. Several long-time residents joined the walk as well.

Everyone was invited back to the society’s Seven Hearths Museum, where an extensive exhibit delves into the iron industry in depth. There is an examination of a number of people from Kent who worked in the various aspects of taking the ore and transforming it into iron.

 

Works by GLN and his mother featured

 Works by GLN and his mother featured

 

A rare exhibit of paintings by George Laurence Nelson alongside the artwork of his mother, Alice Kerr-Nelson Hirschberg, will be featured at the Kent Memorial Library through Aug. 30. The artwork is on loan from the Kent Historical Society.



C.Y. Turner and William Merritt Chase considered her to be “America’s greatest woman artist.”



George Laurence Nelson, one of the founders of the Litchfield Hills Art Colony and the Kent Art Association, bought a home in Kent in 1919, and moved out from New York City in the 1930s to live full time at “Seven Hearths” until his death 1978. Nelson was known for painting portraits, especially those of society notables in New York City.



The Kent Memorial Library is located at 32 N. Main St., Kent. For more information, see www.kentmemoriallibrary.org.

Hike at Macedonia Forge and Furnace site


Hike at Macedonia Forge and Furnace site

KHS sponsored two guided hikes this summer that allowed people to get out and see areas that were involved in the production of iron.

The Kent Iron Furnace, next to the Eric Sloane Museum, was the site of a bustling blast furnace in the 1800s. Participants July 26 toured the trails created by the State of Connecticut’s Office of Culture and Tourism and the Connecticut Antique Machinery Association. Executive Director Marge Smith shared her extensive knowledge of the site and how iron was created by pointing out the different areas, such as where the dam, water wheel and race were and remnants can still be seen today.

Another site, the Macedonia Forge and Furnace was explored Aug. 17. Tucked away just off the road leading into Macedonia Brook State Park, the furnace ruins are at the edge of Macedonia Brook. Smith led a hike at the other end of the park to explore the Orange Trail to see the many charcoal mounds in the area that date back over 100 years.

 

 

Hike at Kent Iron Furnace

Hike of Kent Iron Furnace site

The Kent Historical Society will offer two hikes this summer to explore the rich history of the iron industry within the town.

The first event will be on Saturday, July 26 at 9 a.m.

Attendees are asked to meet at the Eric Sloane Museum at 31 Kent Cornwall Road to walk the trail created by the State of Connecticut’s Office of Culture and Tourism and the Connecticut Antique Machinery Association. It is highlighted with a number of pictorial markers that explain special sites on the property.

Executive Director Marge Smith will share her extensive knowledge of the site and how iron was created by pointing out the different areas, such as where the dam, water wheel and race were and remnants can still be seen today.

The trail is less than 1/4 mile and is easy to navigate. Tour will be under one hour.

Those attending both hikes will be invited back to the society’s Seven Hearths Museum, located at the corner of Studio Hill Road and Route 7, where an extensive exhibit delves into the iron industry in depth. There is an examination of a number of people from Kent who worked in the various aspects of taking the ore and transforming it into iron.

Seven Hearths is open to the public weekends during July, August and September from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. More information about the exhibit can be found at www.kenthistoricalsociety.org or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/KentCTHistoricalSociety. Reservations requested at reservations@kenthistoricalsociety.org.