The leftovers are all in the fridge and Black Friday will soon be behind us. Small Business Saturday will see some of you visiting our small-town retailers who generally offer better service in a friendlier atmosphere, and Cyber Monday will provide those who just plain hate to shop the opportunity to order anything and everything with the stroke of a few keys on the computer.
Come early next week, those of us who volunteer our time serving the community through the area’s non-profits can only hope you have enough energy and enthusiasm remaining to offer us some financial support to help continue our missions on Giving Tuesday.
Most of you who are reading this are probably at least somewhat familiar with some of the things the Historical Society of Easton does in our little town. We are not just a repository of old photographs and Easton memorabilia. While preserving and sharing history remains our stated mission, we strive to remain an active participant helping our town government and our sister non-profits manage historical preservation.
Over the past few years, the Society has worked with the board of selectmen to craft and pass Easton’s first Demolition Delay Ordinance. That ordinance in turn established a Historic Preservation Review Commission, which in addition to reviewing demolition requests on any of the town’s historically significant structures, is tasked with helping citizens in the application process to achieve both state and national recognition of their historic properties. Such status opens several doors for opportunities to apply for and receive low-cost loans or outright grants for individual historic preservation projects.
This past year, members of the Society have also worked as a liaison between the town and the state to help the town apply for Certified Local Government (CLG) status which would allow the town to apply for both state and federal grants for preservation projects. Towns that have qualified and been granted CLG status can receive funding from a larger pool of resources that is made available only to municipalities that have met the stringent requirements to become a CLG. A vital part of meeting those requirements is to have the town either establish a historic district or formally designate one or more of the buildings within the community as a Local Historic Property (LHP). To that end, members of the Society have researched and written a comprehensive 36-page report documenting the historic significance of the 1937 Town Hall building. This is an ongoing effort that we hope will culminate with the granting of the CLG status for Easton sometime within the coming year.
Over the past two and a half years, the Society has also worked hand in hand with the newly reorganized Union Cemetery Association to supply both funding and promotional support for their efforts to restore and preserve one of Easton’s oldest and most important burial grounds. The Society has directly funded the resetting and restoration of about a dozen fallen and damaged headstones and monuments through various fundraising efforts on our website and social media pages.
Our researchers and writers have worked with members of the Sacred Heart faculty since the inception of the new Easton Courier all-digital newspaper. We have provided regular content and have garnered multiple awards for Excellence in Journalism from the Society of Professional Journalists, Connecticut Chapter, on behalf of the Courier over its first three years of publication. Our articles are often fine-tuned to connect history to present-day issues and concerns. Presenting local history in an entertaining and informative format has benefited both the Society and the university team we work with.
The Society is currently co-sponsoring the Old Academy Lecture Series that was recently established to promote the Congregational Church of Easton’s efforts to renovate and restore the town of Easton’s oldest public structure, the 1795 Staples Free Academy building. We offer both volunteer support and promotion, as well as occasional content and speakers. Our recent PowerPoint presentation of the history of the Sport Hill Races drew a sell-out crowd and has even spurred interest in the possible recreation of the famed early 20th century hill climb by the area chapter of the Horseless Carriage Club of America.
We eagerly look forward to the Old Academy Lecture Series’ next event, a Whisky Tasting Evening featuring various vintages of Macallan whisky on December 18th at 7:00 PM. Proceeds from this event go directly towards some much-needed renovations for the Academy building. Ticket sales are limited and are available through our website: https://www.paypal.com/US/fundraiser/charity/1325087
Upcoming discussions in this series will include a look back at the history of Easton’s education – from one-room schoolhouses to the building of Joel Barlow High School, and how eminent domain and the Bridgeport Hydraulic Company changed the landscape of Easton to make it the suburban oasis it has become today.
Also in our future plans: as part of our nation’s 250 project, the Society is teaming up with our counterparts in both Weston and Fairfield to present a program that will highlight the three towns’ shared history. We look forward to either a 2025 or 2026 presentation.
Hopefully, by now, you can see how our efforts go beyond simply maintaining a historical inventory of documents, local work by famed Easton artists and authors, old photographs and genealogical reports. What we do is time intensive and, in many cases, rather expensive to achieve. We receive no local government funding. We rely on the financial support of those we strive to serve – mainly the present and past population of Easton. So, won’t you please consider helping us to continue our work?
You can donate this Tuesday – or any other day of any other week – by visiting our website at: https://historicalsocietyofeastonct.org/membership-and-donations/. Or if you prefer, you can send a check directly to: The Historical Society of Easton, P.O. Box 121, Easton, CT, 06612
Thank You!
