The Connecticut Historical Society (CHS) starts a series of conversations about Hartford’s history and future with two major exhibits, four satellite exhibits, six special programs and a downtown walking tour app. Hartford is changing (for better or worse), as it always has. Throughout the city’s history, buildings have been constructed, removed, and re-used, reflecting and shaping Hartford’s identity. Today’s projects such as iQuilt, CTfastrak, Front Street District and Downtown North (DoNo) are shaping Hartford, just as their historic counterparts (e.g., colonial settlement, establishment of the capital, early 20th century immigration and park movement, urban renewal of the 1950’s/1960’s) have done in the past.
Partnering with Connecticut’s Old State House, Hartford Public Library, Firebox Restaurant at Billings Forge and TheaterWorks, and in conjunction with two recently opened exhibits at the CHS that explore Hartford’s built environment, four satellite exhibitions are opening throughout the city beginning in October 2014. Using photographs, drawings, and other items from the CHS collection, the exhibits will explore different urban planning themes including arts & culture, public education, historic preservation, and housing.
(Re)Using Hartford’s Historic Buildings, Connecticut’s Old State House
800 Main St.October 16, 2014 - March 14, 2015
This satellite exhibit explores the perceived value and practice of historic preservation in Hartford with an emphasis on how urban renewal projects affected the city’s historic buildings and the preservation movement.
Building Public Education in Hartford: A Brief History, Hartford Public Library,
500 Main St.October 22 - November 30, 2014
This satellite exhibit visually explores the changing footprint of public schools in Hartford with an emphasis on how these buildings and institutions were affected by changing demographics and urban renewal projects.
Building a Home in Hartford: A Brief History, Firebox Restaurant @ Billings Forge,
539 Broad St.November 4, 2014 - February 1, 2015
This satellite exhibit will explore the history of residential buildings in and near downtown Hartford with an emphasis on the transformations brought by urban renewal projects beginning in the 1950s.
Building Art & Culture in Downtown Hartford: A Brief History, TheaterWorks,
233 Pearl StJanuary 15 – March 8, 2015
This satellite exhibit will visually explore the presence of arts and culture organizations in downtown Hartford with an emphasis on how they were affected by urban renewal projects beginning in the 1950s.
Six free special programs have been created to expand the conversations beyond the exhibits to consider Hartford’s history, preservation, education, art, and future.
Hartford Then and Now: Richard Welling-Inspired Walking Tours of Downtown Hartford
October 18 at10:00 am & October 23 at12:00 pm - Departs Connecticut’s Old State House, 800 Main St.
Connecticut artist Richard Welling used his ink drawings of Hartford to chronicle the changing skyline and to advocate for the preservation of the city he loved. Forty years later, what has changed in Hartford and what remains the same? Using Welling’s drawings as inspiration, Mary Falvey (Hartford Preservation Alliance) will take participants on a walking tour of Hartford, pointing out what has changed and what remains of the Hartford the artist captured in his artwork.
Education in Place: Hartford’s Urban Learning Environment
October 22 from 6:00-7:30 pm at Hartford Public Library, 500 Main St.
This forum seeks to explore how the educational spaces in our community impact our experiences of learning and our understanding of the city around us. Experts Beth Schiavino-Narvaez (Superintendent, Hartford Schools), Matt Poland (CEO, Hartford Public Library), Tim Sullivan (Assistant Superintendent, CREC),Tyler Smith (Founding Director of the Hartford Architecture Conservancy and Preservation Architect) and moderator Dr. James Thompson (Superintendent, Bloomfield Public Schools) will begin the conversation about education and the built environment.
October 30 from 5:30-7:00 pm at the Connecticut Historical Society, 1 Elizabeth St.
Richard Welling’s illustrations recorded the period of urban renewal in Hartford in the 1960s and 1970s, but beyond his role as visual historian, Welling was an accomplished artist who excelled at the use of line and media to depict space. Cassandra Broadus-Garcia, Associate Professor of Art at Central Connecticut State University (CCSU) will lead an interactive discussion of Welling’s artistic accomplishments that focuses on his paintings, linoleum prints, and mixed-media drawings to highlight Welling’s talents as an illustrator and fine artist.
Reimagining Hartford: Creating the New City
November 5 from 6:00-7:30 pm at Hartford Public Library, 500 Main St.
What if we could time travel to visit the Hartford of the future? What issues will be solved and which will still need to be addressed? We can take a sneak peek at the new city—the city Hartford will become—by looking at innovative organizations in Hartford that are solving persistent problems of housing, health, cultural development and technology with an eye to the future. Panelists include: Gina Muslim (Community Solutions, Northeast Neighborhood Partnership), Steve Yanicke (MakeHartford), Kristina Newman-Scott (MECA City of Hartford) and Cary Wheaton (Billings Forge Community Works).
Hartford Past, Present, and Future: Placemaking, Urban Renewal and Historic Preservation
November 18 from 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm at Connecticut’s Old State House, 800 Main St.
CHS and the Old State House will bring together a distinguished panel of experts, led by speaker Frank Russo (XL Center) who will be joined by panelists Frank Hagaman (Hartford Preservation Alliance), and Jackie Gorsky Mandyck (iQuilt Partnership), to discuss the ways that city planning, historic preservation and placemaking can work together to create a vibrant downtown for Hartford.
Pearl Street and Public Space for the Arts in Hartford
February 2015 TBD at TheaterWorks, 233 Pearl St.
Provocative theater is just one component of what happens at 233 Pearl Street, and the various artistic endeavors housed there are part of Hartford’s increasingly vibrant arts scene. Cathy Malloy (Greater Hartford Arts Council) will discuss how funding space for the arts, and the innovative use of that space to put various arts organizations in close proximity, is just one strategy that engages artists and the public in the cultural development of the city.
Finally, the CHS has launched a free web-based mobile tour app featuring a walking tour of downtown Hartford, guided by the drawings of Richard Welling and other images from the CHS collection. Users can access this free app on their smartphone, tablet, laptop or desktop computer at CHS.org/Hartford.
About the Connecticut Historical Society: Founded in 1825, the Connecticut Historical Society is a non-profit museum, library, research and education center. CHS strives to inspire and foster a life-long interest in history and ignite a passion for learning about history through research assistance, exhibitions, tours and programs for all ages. Visit chs.org or call 860-236-5621.