Newtown Historical Society To Visit Connecticut Cities

Connecticut’s image as the Nutmeg State is based on it bucolic past, with the fast-talking country peddler working on a gullible country populace. But the state’s harbors have always served to develop a more urban environment, and with the rise of industrialization a true city culture began to build.

On March 10, at 7:30 pm, the Newtown Historical Society will present a program in the Community Room of the Booth Library, 25 Main Street, examining how and why Connecticut towns developed into cities, their present state, and efforts to revitalize the urban centers. Karyl Kreizinger Evans will conduct the examination, based on her CPTV production Connecticut and Its Cities.

Ms Evans has been involved in the film and television industry for 23 years, and has produced numerous documentaries for CPTV. Her work has won several awards, including three Emmys for her “Civil War to Civil Rights” segment of The History of African Americans in Connecticut and a Silver Gavel from the American Bar Association for her Amistad Revolt: All We Want Is Make Us Free.

She grew up in Newtown, and still has family roots in the town. Her work has been described as having “a wonderful, positive energy and a marriage of historical perspective and engaging television.” Evans herself says she approaches her documentaries with a “sense of pride about contributing to our history and our way of life.” She will discuss the creation of the documentary Connecticut and Its Cities, and introduce segments from both Part I, “Three Centuries of Change,” examining the rise of the Connecticut city, and Part II, “The Challenge of Renewal,” exploring current efforts at revitalization.

All Newtown Historical Society programs are free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served at the program’s conclusion. For information, call 426-5937.