News and Events

An e-mail to members of the Hartford Preservation Alliance, from Secretary Rafie Podolsky:

"Great news!

"This evening (May 23) the Hartford City Council unanimously passed the Hartford preservation ordinance. The ordinance will provide limited but significant protections to more than 4,000 Hartford buildings that are in districts listed on the National and State Registers of Historic Places. The ordinance will take effect 30 days after the City Council approves design guidelines. It has a three-year sunset date, which means that it must be renewed after three years or it will expire.

"The City intends to hire a consultant to write both the design guidelines and the rules and procedures for the Commission. CAN YOU HELP US IDENTIFY APPROPRIATE CONSULTANTS? The ideal person to take on this task would be someone who is familiar with local historic preservation ordinances and their guidelines (the idea is to use the best of what others have developed, rather than start from scratch), has knowledge of architectural preservation and repair of older buildings, has a good sense of how to integrate design goals with reasonable costs, knows how to write in plain language understandable to lay people, and is able to use graphics and other techniques to produce easily readable materials.

"The City will be preparing a Request for Proposals, which we believe it will distribute widely; but HPA has also been invited to submit names of suitable persons to whom the RFP can be sent directly. If you can suggest persons who would be appropriate for this task, please submit their names IMMEDIATELY to Laura Knott-Twine, HPA's executive director, who will forward the names to the City. Names should be sent to her at rltwine@comcast.net. Please include, if possible, the consultant's name, address, phone number, and email address, along with a brief statement as to why you think the person would do a good job at this task.

"And a second piece of good news...... Tonight the City Council also unanimously adopted an ordinance designating the Capitol Building at 410 Asylum St.as a local historic property. This is the 1926 office building at the northern edge of Bushnell Park, the demolition of which the Connecticut Historic Commission, HPA, and the City of Hartford successfully blocked through litigation. Two years ago, the owners finally gave up and donated the building to Common Ground, an affordable housing developer. While the ultimate use of the building remains contentious (Mayor Perez wants the building to be used for middle income housing rather than supportive housing), the adoption of the ordinance subjects the building permanently to the jurisidiction of the City's Historic Properties Commission, which can prohibit demolition and must review and approve any changes to the exterior of the building before they can be implemented.

"Tonight's events are major victories for preservation and important steps for Hartford. We must now move on to the task of making the preservation ordinance a reality. If you can suggest consultants to write the guidelines and procedures, please get their names to us as soon as possible."

# Posted by Kevin Flood at 11:47 AM

Monday, May 23, 2005

In Praise of Foot Guard Hall

The Hartford Courant's Tom Condon reminds us that amid all the new construction in downtown Hartford, there's a wonderful, century-old building that deserves greater use and appreciation: Foot Guard Hall on High Street. Though obscured now by Intersate 84, which runs close by it, the red-brick Hall once served as the city's major entertainment venue. "John Phillip Souza and his band played there, as did Benny Goodman and his quartet," Condon writes. "Willie Pep fought there, and Willie didn't need a band." It's only within the past few decades, when the nearby Civic Center and other venues sprang up, that the Hall receded from everyone's consciousness. More people should see the still-impressive interior of the building, Condon argues, adding that the First Company, Governor's Foot Guard, welcomes volunteers.

# Posted by Kevin Flood at 10:10 AM

Friday, May 20, 2005

Northwest School to Become Home for History Center

A group of community leaders and organizations is working to turn the annex of Hartford's old Northwest School into the new home for the John E. Rogers African American Cultural Center, according to the Hartford Courant. The Center was established in 1991 to educate Connecticut's black community about its history and culture. The $3.5 million renovation project calls for creating a home for various artifacts, paintings, and writings as well as meeting space for community groups.

Besides the Center itself, the project has the backing of the Upper Albany Neighborhood Revitalization Zone, the Upper Albany Development Inc., the Hartford Public Library, the University of Hartford, the Artists Collective, and Smith Edwards Architects and Capital Restoration Inc. as well as the city of Hartford, the Courant reports.

# Posted by Kevin Flood at 10:33 AM

Thursday, May 19, 2005

Lady Banks Rose Still Grows at Butler-McCook House

The Antiquarian & Landmarks Society sends word that a rare rose still grows in the "pit house" behind its headquarters and museum, the Butler-McCook House on Main Street.

The house was built in 1782; the pit house (so called because it was built below ground level) was built in the 1850s "to house a rosa banksia or Banksia rose, given to Eliza Butler McCook in 1853 by relatives from the Carolinas," writes Natasha Vybornova, head of membership and publicity for the ALS. "Just slightly beyond its ideal climate, the Lady Banks rose still grows! It has a delicate canary yellow blossom, (is) thornless, and is said to have a violet perfume. It was brought from China to England in 1807 by botanist Robert Brown, who named it for Lady Banks."

She adds: "Anyone walking in the garden can see its yellow blossoms as the rose is growing out of the top of the pit house."

The Butler-McCook House, located at 396 Main St., was home to the same family for 189 years. Its now open to visitors year-round, Wednesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sundays from 1 to 4pm, and until 8 p.m. on the first Thursday of every month. Admission is $5 for adults, $2 for children. For more information, visit the ALS website at www.hartnet.org/als.

# Posted by Kevin Flood at 3:52 PM

Sunday, May 15, 2005

Mayor and 'Victorian Lady' to Be Featured on HGTV and in Parade Magazine

A press release from Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez:

"Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez and the 'Victorian Lady' on Ashley Street will be featured on the Home and Garden Television show 'Restore America' starting this fall. A feature article will also appear in the Sunday, May 22nd, edition of 'Parade Magazine.'

"The Queen Anne-style home is one of 12 examples nationwide on how preservation plays an important role in the revitalization of cities. Mayor Perez talks about Hartford’s new Historical Preservation Ordinance--a sweeping measure that not only helps these homes keep with the integrity of the historical period, but also does not pose a financial burden on Hartford homeowners.

"Mayor Perez also stresses how the City’s history and architecture---like that of the Victorian Lady---are some of the reasons why more people are moving into Hartford. The City has 800 new homeowners since 2002.

"'Dutch traders came to Hartford and built a fort called the 'House of Hope,' says Mayor Perez. He adds, 'Today, the Victorian Lady is a shining example of Hartford’s hope that restoring these irreplaceable homes continues to be an important part of the City’s renaissance.'"

The "Victorian Lady" is a brick building that was moved last summer from 247 Sigourney St. to 21 Ashley St. to save it from the wrecking ball. View a picture of the move on the home page of the Hartford Preservation Alliance, which gave one of its 2005 Jeffery S. Czopor Preservation Awards to the Northside Institutions Neighborhood Alliance for its role in the effort.

# Posted by Kevin Flood at 1:55 PM

Friday, May 13, 2005

Prints from 19th-century Hartford on Display at CHS

A press release from the Connecticut Historical Society:

"During the 19th century, Hartford was a major center of print production and publishing. The Kellogg Brothers of Hartford were important rivals of the better-known New York firm Currier and Ives, lithographers famous for bucolic prints of simple American life.

"The inexpensive and colorful prints issued by Daniel Wright Kellogg, and his brothers, Elijah Chapman Kellogg and Edmund Burke Kellogg, offer a cross-section of Victorian tastes; subjects include views of towns and cities, factories, businesses and other prominent buildings, portraits, historical subjects - including lively contemporary depictions of Civil War battles - and a vast array of sentimental portrayals of women, children and animals. Most of these prints were either black and white or hand-colored until after 1867, when the firm was reorganized as Kellogg and Bulkeley and color printing was introduced.

"The CHS Museum is pleased to present a sampling of the nearly 1,000 Kellogg lithographs in its collection - the largest of its kind - in 'Picturing Connecticut: Prints and Drawings of Connecticut Towns and Cities, 1830-1900.' Drawings by Connecticut artists John Warner Barber, Joseph Ropes, and Charles DeWolf Brownell are featured alongside prints by the Kellogg Brothers and birds-eye views of Connecticut towns by artist O.H. Bailey. This featured selection from the CHS Museum Graphics Collection is on view May 13 through July 17, 2005.

"For more information on the Kellogg Collection and other prints, drawings and photographs in the CHS Museum Graphics Collection, visit the online exhibition at www.chs.org/graphcoll."

Hartford History