E.W. Historical Society
East Windsor, Connecticut
Happy Holidays
The holiday season is upon us and we’ve got the decorations up to celebrate! With the rock wall almost finished with the help of Chuck and his team from True North Stoneworks LLC, we have a nice central focus in front of the school house. Now we need more snow! We hope everyone is having a nice holiday season whatever you may celebrate. At the museum, we’re still keeping busy and staying warm. Duke (the dog) is supervising us as usual and ensuring our hard work. Thank you for a great 2025, everyone. Feel free to stop on by on a Saturday morning and say hi!
-J.
A Revolutionary Event
We had our final meeting of 2025 last Saturday and one big topic was discussed. This is the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. There will be events across the state of Connecticut and the East Windsor Historical Society wants to get involved! We’re looking for volunteers to join a committee to plan a big summer event. If you’re interested in helping in any way, please email us at EastWindsorHistory@gmail.com and let us know! Ideas were flying and the more, the merrier! Stop by on Saturday, December 6th at 10 AM to share those ideas!
We’ll also have some greenery clippings for wreath making. So bring your own materials and grab some greens to make something special for the holidays!
-J.
Walking on Sunshine
Over the past few weeks, work was done on the new walkways and rock wall in front of the Barber Hill Schoolhouse and in front of the antique tool and blacksmith shop. They’re almost done now and we couldn’t be happier. The new walkway will make it easier for folks to make their way into the buildings (and also looks a whole lot nicer!) The finishing touches are happening now, so if you drive by you’ll see the change. As the holidays approach, we’re thinking of what me might put out front as a winter display. Maybe a sleigh would be nice? What ideas do you have? Stay tuned and stop by to see all we’ve been up to!
Thank you to our friends at True North Stoneworks (Dublin, NH) and J&D Landscaping for their hard work.
-J
Ice Cream Social
The kids had fun with our typewriter at this years Ice Cream Social. They left fun messages like the one above, along with some names and a few 6 7’s (which for them was hilarious and for us was bewildering.) We want to thank everyone for stopping by and saying hi. The ice cream from Tulmeadow Farms was fantastic, as usual. We had live music and hayrides and volunteers stationed all over to answer questions. The courthouse floors were finished just in time for the event and L. Ellsworth Stoughton’s desk was on display inside. We heard great feedback on the hard work that was put in over the summer months.
We’re thankful to our volunteers for sharing their knowledge and spending their time making the day a great success!
It’s a great way to wind down the end of the year but no rest for us yet! While the cool air of fall is upon us, the sun is still shining and we’re still here every Saturday. As I type, we’ve got some high school kids checking out the new truck to see what needs fixing up and some visitors looking up the history of the Potwin(e) family. Every day our history grows longer and we’re glad we have a place to preserve it. -J
Brownstones
Check out the brownstones we received! As the state/town completed work on the Broad Brook dam (located in the center of Broad Brook) they had a number of brownstones that needed to be removed. They saved those stones for the Historical Society. Earlier this month, those stones made their way to our museum. We’re deciding what to do with them and the most likely outcome will be featuring them in a rock wall around some new stone walkways going in front of the Barber Hill Schoolhouse. Plans are always open to change though. The dam was a brownstone quarry in its early days. You can still find stones in town, particularly on the retaining wall of the Manor House on Main Street. Those same stones were also ones used in the church that once stood on Church Street. I guess it’s safe to say that we like to re-use and make good again what we have here in town. We’ll keep you updated as our plans grown and change. – J
E.W. Historical Society 