RAILROAD MUSEUM OF NEW ENGLAND LAUNCHES 2018 SUMMER SEASON WITH BBQ, BOURBON AND BACON.

The exciting summer season at the Railroad Museum of New England launches on Memorial Day Weekend. Beginning on Saturday, May 26, families wanting to enjoy the scenic views of the Naugatuck River and the Litchfield Hills are invited to take a ride back in time on the Museum’s vintage 1920s passenger coaches. 

Trains leave Thomaston Station at 12 noon and 2 pm on Saturdays and Sundays beginning this Holiday weekend, and throughout the summer.  The 2 pm trains have the added feature of stopping at Fascia’s Chocolates in Waterbury to enjoy delicious selections of sweets.         

Kicking off the season with some “special sauce,” on Saturday, May 26, the Museum is offering the “Litchfield Hills BBQ and Whiskey Special,” sponsored by Litchfield Distillery.  This special event, for adults over 21, features a delicious mix of bourbon, BBQ and music with a train ride and scenic views.  

The program starts at Thomaston Train Station at 5 pm, with the serving of the “Litchfielder”— Litchfield Distillery’s signature cocktail. The BBQ includes a hearty BBQ appetizer buffet of pulled pork sliders, dry rubbed chicken wings, BBQ ribs, bourbon BBQ meatballs wrapped in bacon, and more, all provided by Black Rock Tavern of Thomaston.

On the train ride to Torrington each guest will be offered a “Brown Derby” cocktail, live music and select cheeses.  Upon arrival, passengers will take a leisurely, five-minute, down-hill walk down to the Five Points Gallery for scrumptious desserts, live entertainment, and coffee.

Desserts include caramel pecan cake drops, maple bourbon cannolis, caramel apple mini cheesecakes, truffle filled double chocolate cookie tarts, and mini cupcakes.  The event finishes up with a walk back to the train and return ride to Thomaston, while enjoying a “Mochalotion” dessert cocktail.

Further into the season, the Museum also is scheduling four special excursions with the “Torrington Twilight Express” on Wednesdays from July 11^th through August 1^st.  This special express train will run in collaboration with the Main Street Marketplace and leave Thomaston Station at 5 pm, departing Torrington at 7:30 pm, allowing passengers the chance to enjoy Torrington’s popular street festival.    

Kick off the Memorial Day Weekend with a Cruise to Sheffield Island

The Sheffield Island Lighthouse is an iconic symbol of Connecticut’s maritime history.  This historic lighthouse and light keeper’s cottage is located at the southern end of Norwalk’s necklace of islands on the west entrance of the Norwalk River in Long Island Sound. One of the best ways to kick of the season is to take a cruise on the C.J. Toth on Saturday, May 26, Sunday, May 27 and Monday, May 28. at 11 a.m., 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. on all three days.  Tickets for this exciting excursion can be purchased in advance by clicking here or at the dock, space permitting.

This year is an extra special season for the Seaport Association because it is celebrating Sheffield Islands Lighthouse’s 150 Birthday!  Activated in 1868, Sheffield Island Lighthouse, now listed on the National Register of Historic Places was in service for thirty- four years before it was retired in 1902.  Today a visit to this gives visitors a first-hand experience on how important this lighthouse was to coastal and oceangoing shipping as these vessels plied their way on Long Island Sound, a major artery of communication and transportation.

A highlight of this journey is the cruise itself.   The cruise allows passengers to experience the beauty of Norwalk from the water with wonderful views of the shoreline, islands and the harbor. The fresh sea breeze and birdlife are enjoyed in the comfort of the Seaport’s modern vessel on the way to and from the island.

Reaching the Island, passengers take a tour of the ten-room light keeper’s cottage and the lighthouse that is furnished in period furniture giving visitors a glimpse of what life was like as a lighthouse keeper.  If the day is clear, the New York City Skyline can be seen.  Make sure to save time to look for shells, play on the lawns, and unwind with a picnic lunch on your own private island before heading back.

If you love nature and birdlife, don’t miss the chance to explore the Nature Trail through the Steward B. McKinney Wildlife Refuge. There is a wide array of bird and wildlife to be seen here including nesting herons, wading birds, shorebirds, terns and many others.  A special viewing platform enhances the viewing experience. Don’t forget to charge your cell phone up and to bring your camera and binoculars.

Round trip ferry tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for children 4-12, children 3 and under are $5.  The boat leaves from the Sheffield Island Dock located at the corner of North Water Street and Washington Street in historic South Norwalk. Parking is available in the adjacent Norwalk Maritime Center Garage.  Be sure to wear comfortable closed toe shoes, and take note that for safety reasons flip-flops are not allowed.  Capacity is limited to 49 passengers, so purchasing tickets in advance is recommended by visiting the website or https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/3340649.

About the Seaport Association

The Norwalk Seaport Association was founded in 1978 by a group of local citizens who had a vision to revitalize South Norwalk and preserve Norwalk’s maritime heritage. 

The Norwalk Seaport Association offers a cultural, environmental, and historical journey to the Norwalk Islands.  The Sheffield Island Lighthouse and the Light Keeper’s Cottage provide a unique historical and educational venue which strives to increase awareness, appreciation and consideration for our environment and how the preservation of historic buildings and nature contribute to our quality of life.

It is our belief that preservation strengthens the perpetual partnership between the past, the present and the future. The combination of the Lighthouse and the Stewart B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge offers an unparalleled opportunity to educate children of all ages and adults about the importance of preserving Long Island Sound, our environment and maritime heritage.

Weir Farm National Historic Site Opens for 2018 Season and Features Student Art Exhibit in May

Weir Farm National Historic Site opens its doors for the season on Wednesday, May 2, 2018. The Visitor Center, Weir Studio, and Young Studio will be open from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, and guided tours of the Weir House will be offered at 11:00, 1:00, 2:00, and 3:00 Wednesday to Sunday. Visit the home and studio of America's most beloved Impressionist, J. Alden Weir, chat with the Park Rangers, or try your hand at creating a masterpiece in this unique National Park for the Arts. Free-to-use art supplies are available during visitor center hours, and programs such as art workshops, wellness programs, talks, guided walks and special events will be offered throughout the season.   To kick off the 2018 season, Weir Farm National Historic Site is proud to announce the installation of a new temporary art exhibit in the park's visitor center. Entitled "Impressions of Nature," this art installation, completed in partnership with the International Fiber Collaborative, encouraged students throughout Connecticut to create art inspired by nature as J. Alden Weir and other Weir Farm artists have done for over 135 years. Students from 19 different schools collaborated and created over 60 works of art for this exhibit. This exhibition will be on display during visitor center hours until June 3, 2018.   Student artists for the following schools participated in this exhibit: Harborside Middle School, Columbus Magnet School, Rogers Park Middle School, Oxford High School, Branchville Elementary School, Central Elementary School, Ritter Elementary School, Lincoln Middle School, The Academy High School, Brien McMahon High School, Joel Barlow High School, Bethel High School, Mathewson School, Middlebrook School, Reed Intermediate School, Booth Hill School, Second Hill Lane Elementary School, Scotts Ridge Middle School, The French American School

The "Good Magic" of Fiddleheads

One of springtime's delicacies are fiddleheads that usually bloom in the month of May in Connecticut. Foraging, harvesting and eating this iconic wild edible is a time-honored spring tradition for many Native Americans. 

About Fiddleheads

Fiddleheads are the coiled tips of young ostrich ferns that grow near brooks, rivers, and lakes.  They grow throughout the Northeastern U.S. and from British Columbia to the Northeastern Canadian Provinces where they have been consumed for centuries.

Fiddleheads are easily recognizable because the top of this plant looks like the scrolled neck of a violin. The trick is to pick fiddleheads before they unfurl into the large fronds of the fern; once they get too big, they are to bitter to eat. Picking time is short and lasts only about two weeks.

Fresh Fiddleheads are delicious and have a woodsy flavor.  Many compare it to a mixture of asparagus, spinach, and wild mushrooms.  Best of all, fiddleheads are high in iron, potassium, niacin, riboflavin, zinc, magnesium, phosphorus, and vitamins A and C.  Fiddleheads are also low in calories and high in fiber!

Medicinal and Culinary Use

Fiddleheads were called mahsos in the language of Malecite Native Peoples, a word that means "good magic."  For Native Americans, fiddleheads were an important source of food in the spring and provided vitamins and micronutrients. They were usually steamed or boiled in soups.

Medicinally the Cree (Algonquian) used fiddleheads in a decoction of the stalk during childbirth and for back pain.  Maliseet, Mi'kmaq, and Passamaquoddy tribes used fiddleheads as a medicinal tonic that acted as a diuretic. 

Maliseet traditional wisdom believes that consuming fiddleheads helps to cleanse the body of impurities and toxins. They also introduced this delectable delicacy to the Acadians, who were the descendants of French colonists that settled in Eastern Canada and Maine.

This iconic spring plant is thought to have become an art form.  Some have interpreted the double curve motif that Wabanaki people sometimes use to decorate artwork bears a strong resemblance to fiddleheads.

Did you Know

Only two or three fiddleheads should be picked from a clump, leave some to mature into large leaves.

Look for tightly curled buds that have just started to emerge for the best flavor.

Before cooking, fiddleheads make sure to rub off the brown paper-like skin and wash them thoroughly.

Fiddleheads don't keep long if the stems turn brown before cooking just snip them off.

The Institute for American Indian Studies

Located on 15 woodland acres the IAIS has an outdoor Three Sisters and Healing Plants Gardens as well as a replicated 16th c. Algonkian Village.  Inside the museum, authentic artifacts are displayed in permanent, semi-permanent and temporary exhibits from prehistory to the present that allows visitors a walk through time. The Institute for American Indian Studies is located on 38 Curtis Road in Washington Connecticut and can be reached online or by calling 860-868-0518.

The Institute for American Indian Studies preserves and educates through discovery and creativity the diverse traditions, vitality, and knowledge of Native American cultures. Through archaeology, the IAIS is able to build new understandings of the world and history of Native Americans, the focus is on stewardship and preservation.  This is achieved through workshops, special events, and education for students of all ages.

Mystery of the Templeton Site Revealed

If you are interested in Native American archeology in Connecticut, don't miss the lecture on May 20 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on the recent findings of the Templeton Site in Washington at the Institute of American Indian Studies located on 38 Curtis Road. The cost to attend this event is $5 and light refreshments will be served. The public is encouraged and welcomed to attend.

The Presentation

The presenter, Dr. Singer is a specialist on the Paleo-Indian period in American history, which is the earliest known human epoch in Northeastern North America, which followed the end of the Wisconsin glaciation. 

This presentation will highlight the results of the 2016 and 2017 archaeological excavations at the Templeton site which is the oldest known archaeological site in Connecticut.  Amazingly, its Paleo-Indian component has been radiocarbon-dated to 11,190 years before the present.  

Dr. Singer will present new interpretations of raw material selection and toolstone use, artifact composition, and intra-site patterning in the Paleo-Indian component. Don’t miss this exciting lecture on one of the most significant archaeological sites in the Northeast!

Site Background

The Templeton site was discovered and originally excavated in the late 1970s by archaeologists from the Institute of American Indian Studies under the direction of the Director of Research, Dr. Roger Moeller, who published a book on his findings –6LF21: A Paleo-Indian Site in Western Connecticut.  

Dr. Singer, a research associate at The Institute is currently excavating the Templeton site. His recent excavations were facilitated by collaboration among members of the local Washington community, including the Litchfield Hills Archaeology Club, the Friends of the Office of State Archaeology, the Norwalk Community College Archaeology Club, New Hampshire SCRAP,  and archaeology field schools from Western Connecticut State University and the University of Connecticut.  In addition, many avocational archaeologists and professional archaeologists also participated. 

The Institute for American Indian Studies

Located on 15 woodland acres the IAIS has an outdoor Three Sisters and Healing Plants Gardens as well as a replicated 16th c. Algonkian Village.  Inside the museum, authentic artifacts are displayed in permanent, semi-permanent and temporary exhibits from prehistory to the present that allows visitors a walk through time. The Institute for American Indian Studies is located on 38 Curtis Road in Washington Connecticut and can be reached online or by calling 860-868-0518.

The Institute for American Indian Studies preserves and educates through discovery and creativity the diverse traditions, vitality, and knowledge of Native American cultures. Through archaeology, the IAIS is able to build new understandings of the world and history of Native Americans, the focus is on stewardship and preservation.  This is achieved through workshops, special events, and education for students of all ages.

All About Wampum

 In 20th century slang, the word wampum was commonly used to denote money along with such terms as loot, moolah, and even clams, a far cry from what it meant to Native Americans who used wampum to foster spiritual and social bonds among the Native communities.  The fascinating story of wampum will be told at a special Wampum Demonstration & Talk with Annawon Weeden, from the Mashpee/ Wampanoag tribe on Saturday, May 19, at the Institute for American Indian Studies. 

About Wampum

Wampum is composed of white and purple beads and discs fashioned from two different shells.  The white beads are made from the whelk, a sea snail and the purple beads are made from a quahog.  These shells are found in the ocean water south of Cape Cod to New York, with an abundance of them in Long Island Sound.  

The shells were harvested in the warm summer months. After the meat was eaten, the shells were drilled and polished.  A hole was pierced through the shell so they could be strung on strings made from plant fibers or animal tendons.  Typically tubular in shape, the beads were then woven into belts, necklaces, headpieces, bracelets, earrings and other adornments. The beads were even used at day-long games with the winners taking the wampum bounty.

The color of the beads had meaning for the Algonquians.  The white beads represented purity and light and were used as gifts to mark important events like births and marriages. The purple beads represented serious events like war or death.  The combination of these beads represented the duality of the world, light, and darkness, man, and woman, life, and death.

Wampum Today & The Workshop

Today, Native artists and culture bearers continue to craft wampum jewelry and use wampum belts to record tribal history.  At this workshop on May 19 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at the Institute for American Indian Studies in Washington participants will learn about the significance of wampum and how it continues to provide a social and spiritual bong among Native communities.   A highlight of this workshop will be to watch the remarkable process of how wampum is made while listening to the stories the beads tell as they are strung.

The Institute for American Indian Studies

Located on 15 woodland acres the IAIS has an outdoor Three Sisters and Healing Plants Gardens as well as a replicated 16th c. Algonkian Village.  Inside the museum, authentic artifacts are displayed in permanent, semi-permanent and temporary exhibits from prehistory to the present that allows visitors a walk through time. The Institute for American Indian Studies is located on 38 Curtis Road in Washington Connecticut and can be reached online or by calling 860-868-0518.
The Institute for American Indian Studies preserves and educates through discovery and creativity the diverse traditions, vitality, and knowledge of Native American cultures. Through archaeology, the IAIS is able to build new understandings of the world and history of Native Americans; the focus is on stewardship and preservation.  This is achieved through workshops, special events, and education for students of all ages.

Mother's Day Perfumes and Powders Workshop for Kids @ Wilton Historical Society

On May 12 from  11 am to 12:30 pm the Wilton Historical Society located on 224 Danbury Road in Wilton is hosting a special perfumes and powders workshop for kids. 

In this program, Museum Educator Lola Chen will introduce kids to the world of perfumes and powders, including the story of Angelique, or the "Skunk Works" of Wilton (more below!). The workshop project is to create a fragrant, fizzing bath "bomb" - perfect for Mom!  Children will also help prepare a healthy snack.

According to the Perfume Society "Perfume's fascinating trail leads us from Ancient Egypt to Ancient Greece, to Rome - where rosewater played in fountains - and up to France, where Louis XIV's court was known as 'la cour parfumée', with the king demanding a different fragrance for every single day

Modern' perfumery, though, was born in the late 19th Century - with the creation of synthetic ingredients, and the dawn of great names like Coty, Guerlain, Roger & Gallet. Along came Coco Chanel, and No. 5 - and 'designer' perfumes were firmly on the map.

And it was Estée Lauder, in America in the 1950s, who with Youth Dew started the trend for wearing perfume as an everyday pleasure, rather than a just-for-special-occasions luxury. (Actually, Mrs. Lauder's blockbuster began as a bath oil - something women didn't feel guilty about buying for themselves.)" 

Did you know?

Angelique, or the "Skunk Works" was one of Wilton's most unique businesses, located at 93 Old Ridgefield Road. Founded in 1946, Angelique's perfumes and soaps were sold in specialty shops and featured in publications such as Life magazine. The company also employed marketing stunts - in one instance using a blower to waft aromas across Wilton Center. In 1962 the company was bought out by their competitor, Hazel Bishop. Angelique closed a year later. 

Visit the new exhibition "Connecticut's History, Wilton's Story" at the Wilton Historical Society to see Angelique perfume and soap.

Wellness Walk @ Weir Farm May 20

On Sunday, May 20 from 9 am to 11 am, Weir Farm in Wilton is offering a wellness walk through Shinrin Yoku Forest.  This walk is part of the park's Healthy Parks Healthy People program. The wellness walk will be lead by Certified Forest Therapy Guide Jennifer Salkin.

Shinrin Yoku, also called Forest Bathing, is a way to experience the natural world with increased attention to one's sense perceptions, and has many benefits including: reduces stress & improves immune functioning, lowers blood pressure, increases vigor & improves mood, increases the ability to focus, improves sleep. Join Jennifer for a slow-paced hike and re-connect with nature at Weir Farm National Historic Site!

Registration: Registration is free, but space is limited to twenty participants, so please call early to secure a spot! To register or for more information, please call 203-834-1896 ext. 28.