Grants Awarded in 2004/2005

Bristol : $2,000 to the Bristol Clock and Watch Museum : As part of a planned expansion, the museum will use grant funds to determine the feasibility of using an 1896 Queen Anne residence, recently acquired, to house the museum's library and archival collections, create a public program area, and create storage areas for collections.

Danbury : $5,000 to the Tarrywile Park Authority : Funds will be used to hire an architect to develop plans for re-use of Hearthstone Castle (1897), purchased by the city of Danbury in the 1980's as part of an effort to protect urban open space. The Castle is one of the last remaining medieval style castles in Connecticut; its restoration and re­use for the public will add to a growing list of restored historic buildings in the city.

Greenwich : $5,000 to the Historical Society of the Town of Greenwich , with the Glenville Historic Preservation Organization as co-sponsor. Funds will support consultant research for and preparation of a National Register of Historic Places nomination of Glenville, a section of Greenwich where modest buildings remain from the time when Glenville was a mill town, with a large Irish immigrant population.

Guilford : $3,000 to the Guilford Preservation Alliance to update and add to the town's Historic Resource Inventory, completed in 1981. Guilford's notable mid-20th century architecture and significant historic barns are among the resources to be added to the inventory.

Haddam : $5,000 to the Haddam Historical Society : The Haddam Historical Society plans to move an historic barn from Brooklyn, CT to its property combining saving and re-using a historic structure with a further goal of creating a multi-use heritage center for thesociety. Funds will be used for barn documentation and preliminary architectural and site designs. The barn will be moved in the summer of 2005.

Hamden : $1,500 to the Town of Hamden which is sponsoring the nomination of the Cedars section of the village of Whitneyville in Hamden to the National Register of Historic Places. New language in Hamden's Plan of Conservation and Development makes historic preservation a key planning tool in Hamden's several neighborhoods.

Hartford : $10,000 to the Connecticut Historical Society Museum : In a partnership agreement with the Old State House Association, the Connecticut Historical Society Museum will manage operations, preserve the historic site and revitalize the visitor experience at the Old State House. To address critical preservation issues at this National Historic Landmark, the museum will use grant funds to create a capital needs assessment of the physical and mechanical needs of the site, leading to a proactive plan for continued preservation of the Old State House.

Hartford : $2,000 to The Mark Twain House and Museum : The museum plans to restore the property's Carriage House so that it may be opened to the public. Before starting restoration, the museum needs to hire a professional engineering firm to evaluate the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HV AC) system to determine if the system can accommodate the needs of a restored Carriage House and also be modified in the Twain house itself to increase usable space.

Hebron : $2,520 to the Town of Hebron , in partnership with the Hebron Historic Properties Commission : Seeking to determine the best use for an ornate, late Georgian house acquired by the town when acquiring a tract for recreational activities, the town will hire a team of experts to recommend future uses for the structure, including cost estimates. Community support runs high for keeping the house as part of the landscape. Recommendations will then be given to the Board of Selectman for consideration and action, though demolition remains an option.

New London : $1,000 to New London Landmarks to develop professional urban planning design concepts for an area known historically as "the Parade", adjacent to the historic Union Station.

Norwich : $4,500 to A Capelo do Santo Antonio: To the Cape Verdean community in Norwich, St. Anthony's Chapel, a tiny structure built in 1926, commemorates the establishment of Cape Verdean immigrant community in Norwich and the surrounding towns. Taken apart practically overnight by the owner of the land on which it resided, the chapel will be re-erected in a Norwich city park where it will be used to foster cultural awareness of the diversity within the Norwich community.

Rocky Hill : $4,500 to the Rocky Hill Historical Society , in partnership with the Riverfront Preservation Society: As a result of losing several historic houses and sites to residential and commercial development in the last few years, the Rocky Hill Historical Society and the Riverfront Preservation Society will use grant funds to contract a survey and the related work necessary to establish a National Register of Historic Places District in the riverfront area.

Rowayton : $1,212 to the Rowayton Historical Society to hire a consultant to prepare a nomination of the historic center of Rowayton to the National Register of Historic Places, an intact district of 28 properties in the center of the village dating from the late 18th century through the 1930's. The various architectural styles of this district demonstrate the growth and history of a Connecticut coastal village.

Shelton : $3,100 to the Shelton Historical Society : Grant funds will be used to conduct an environmental improvement assessment at the c. 1820 Brownson House at the Shelton History Center. The assessment will develop specifications for climate control in the house as part of an overall plan to re-interpret the house for visitors.

Suffield : $4,000 to the Town of Suffield to hire a consultant to prepare a nomination to the National Register of Historic Places of Babb's Beach property, a community center though the 20th century on Lake Congamond, currently the focus of a major restoration effort among Suffield citizen and the town. Babb's Beach includes a roller rink and a band shell where Big Band era music drew hundreds in the summer.

Thomaston : $5,000 to the Thomaston Opera House, a significant building undergoing restoration while offering arts and education opportunities for surrounding communities. Consultants will perform a conditions survey of the finishes in the interior of the building where water damage and loose plaster have damaged murals and decorative painting.

Torrington : $2,000 to the Torrington Historical Society : Grant funds will support research, paint analysis, testing and treatment development for mural restoration in the Hotchkiss­Fyler house (1900) bedroom. The murals, painted directly on plaster walls, were painted over in the 1960's. Overall restoration of the house museum ties in with community efforts to restore historic buildings to create a desirable tourist destination.

West Hartford : $6,000 to the Noah Webster House : The interior of the National Historic Landmark Noah Webster house has not gone though a major restoration since the 1970's. Since this time it has suffered the effects of exterior condition, a failing HVAC system and heavy programmatic use. Grants funds will be used to create a master plan and feasibility study for the restoration, including building documentation, action steps, and cost estimates.

Windsor : $4000 to the Windsor Historical Society for partial support of a historic structures report on the society's Strong House. The HSR will provide missing documentary evidence on how the house evolved and also assist the society as it faces an extensive restoration project for the building.

Windsor Locks : $3,500 to the Windsor Locks Preservation Association : Funds will help with plans for the restoration of the Windsor Locks Train Station (1875), listed on the National Register of Historic, Places in 1975. From this station, a gateway to Windsor Locks, Governor Ella Grasso rode a train to her inauguration as the first elected female governor of Connecticut.