History Bites IV:

The Lure Of The Land

The attraction of Litchfield County, with its landscape of rolling hills and valleys, has been celebrated for over 300 years. From the sturdy Yankees who settled the area in the 18th Century to the present influx of weekenders seeking escape in the hills’ timeless tranquility, the land has played a role in shaping the area’s culture.

The fourth annual “History Bites Lunchtime Lecture Series” is exploring the many facets of this treasured landscape. Each week one of ten sponsoring organizations will host a lecture that explores a different landscape or use of the land.

All lectures are free and are at noon every Thursday through May 27. Attendees would bring their own bite of lunch to eat during the program; each sponsoring institution will provide beverages and dessert. Reservations are requested but not required.

Bill Hosley, executive director of The Antiquarian & Landmarks Society, and Carol Ann Brown, president of Old Bethlehem Historical Society, will on April 1 take participants on an armchair tour of “The Outdoor Museum,” the old burying ground of Bethlehem and the Bellamys, noting the unique art of this landscape gem. The lecture will be at Church of the Nativity Parish Hall, East Street in Bethlehem (203-266-5188).

Arthur Milnor, executive director of Flanders Nature Center & Land Trust, will present “Of Flanders’ Fields” on April 8. His program will look at the history and preservation of this precious acreage. The lecture will be at Flanders Nature Center, Flanders Road in Woodbury (203-263-3711).

On April 15 Dr Lawrence Pond of Woodbury will present evidence of pre-history bites, ice ages, lava flows, and the Pomperaug Watershed in “The Geological History of Woodbury.” He will be at the Old Woodbury Town Hall, at the corner of Route 6 and Mountain Road (203-263-2446).

On April 22 anthropologist Dr Russ Handsman’s “Native Homeland” will explore how American Indians of the Litchfield Hills used the land during the 18th Century. His lecture will be at Litchfield Historical Society (860-567-4501).

“Tales of the Top of the Mead,” presented by Valerie DiLorenzo and Gerald Geci of Topsmead State Forest, on April 29, will follow the development of Edith Morton Chase’s forest from working farm with formal English gardens in the early 1900s to its present public treasure. The lecture will take place at Litchfield Community Center, 421 Bantam Road in Litchfield (860-567-5694).

In “Three Phenomenal Women, Three Phenomenal Landscapes” on May 6, Mattatuck Museum curator Ann Smith will compare and contrast Natalie Van Vleck of Flanders Nature Center, Caroline Ferriday of the Bellamy-Ferriday House & Garden, and Edith Morton Chase of Topsmead State Forest. She will lead her program at The Mattatuck Museum, 144 West Main Street in Waterbury (203-753-0381).

On May 13 Bruce Reinholdt, curator of The Gunn Museum, will share the rules, the social etiquette, and the equipment of baseball in “Town Ball on the Town Green.” Attendees will be invited to play a pick-up game on the Washington Green at the lecture’s conclusion. The lecture will be at The Gunn Historical Museum, 5 Wykeham Road (at Route 47) in Washington (860-868-7756).

On May 20 Jack Nelson of Bethlehem Land Trust will trace the Bellamy Preserve in “From Farm to Forest.” An interpretive guided walk (rain or shine) through the preserve will trace over two centuries of families and farmers until philanthropist Caroline Ferriday donated the land to Bethlehem Land Trust in 1990. The Bellamy-Ferriday House, on the green in Bethlehem, will be the location of the program (203-266-7596).

The last history bite, on May 27, will feature UMass Boston master’s degree candidate Stephen Bartkus in “Footprints Under the Land,” discussing archaeological evidence found at The Glebe House Museum, at the museum on Hollow Road in Woodbury. Rain location is St Paul’s Church on Main Street in Woodbury (203-263-2855).