Mattatuck’s Fortune/Larry The Skeleton On Permanent View

WATERBURY — It is a story that was a long time in the telling – over 200 years – but the Mattatuck Museum has unveiled the fascinating and tragic story of Fortune, an enslaved African-American who lived in Waterbury during the 1700s, with a new permanent exhibit.

The skeletal remains of a man were on display at the Mattatuck Museum for over 40 years during the 20th Century. But who was he? What was his story? These and many other questions, both historical and ethical, have been posed and finally answered with the opening of the new exhibit, “Fortune’s Story.”

The man was Fortune, an African-American slave owned by Dr Preserved Porter, a prominent bonesetter (now known as an orthopedic surgeon), and leader in the Waterbury of the late 1700s. Upon Fortune’s death under mysterious circumstances, Dr Porter had preserved his skeletal remains, to use as a teaching tool.

The skeleton, which had remained in Dr Porter’s family for generations, was given to Mattatuck Historical Society by a descendent of Dr Porter’s. The skeleton was known by generations of Waterburians as “Larry,” because that name had been written on the skull sometime in the 19th Century.

Though a popular exhibit, in 1970 museum officials removed the skeleton from public display out of a shared respect for the deceased and the rising social conscious of the community. But the historical significance of Fortune and his story begged to be told.

In 1998 the African-American History Project Committee at the museum embarked on the project to find out the real legacy of the man known as Larry. It has finally been unearthed thanks to many years of scholarly research and the sophistication of today’s scientific and diagnostic tools allowing this remarkable story to be told. Included in the exhibit’s multi-media presentation is a representative image of what Fortune looked like while alive, made possible through the use of advanced technology.

Museum admission is $4 for adults over 16. For further information go to the museum’s website, www.MattatuckMuseum.org, or call the museum at 207-753-0381 extension 10. The Mattatuck Museum is at 144 West Main Street in Waterbury.