DFAW Fall 2010 Program

For our Fall program and Annual Meeting on Saturday, September 25, we return to the Windsor Historical Society in “mother Windsor.” In the morning, we’ll gather for our Social Hour, Memorial Service, and program. Our speaker will be Dr. Kevin McBride, Associate Professor, Department of Anthropology, University of Connecticut and Director of Research, Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center, who will give a talk on “The Memory and Legacy of the Pequot War.”

After more than 370 years, the Pequot War (1636-1638) remains one of the most controversial and significant events in the Colonial and Native history of North America. Dr. McBride’s lecture will provide a summary of a multi-year research project funded by the National Park Service American Battlefield Protection Program to identify and preserve battlefields and historical sites associated with the Pequot War. He will also discuss current results from fieldwork at Porter’s Rocks, where 77 English and 250 Narragansett and Mohegan allies spent the night before the attack on the Pequot fortified village at Mystic, and the site of the Mystic fort which was attacked and burned by the English and their native allies on May 26, 1637. For more information about the project and Dr. McBride, see page 3 of the Summer Newsletter.

In the afternoon, following our luncheon and business meeting, there will be opportunities to tour the Windsor Historical Society’s historic houses and galleries, use the WHS library, or visit with our genealogist, Edwin Strickland, who will be available to assist with the DFAW computer database.

Registration: $22.00 per person, including luncheon, or $5.00 per person, speaker only. For more information, e-mail DFAW1633@Yahoo.com.

2010 Spring Program Update

Our luncheon will be a served, sit-down meal featuring your choice of Stuffed Chicken, Baked Scrod, or London Broil w/Mushroom Gravy. All meals include a first course of Family Style Pasta, a second course of Garden Salad, plus Oven Roasted Potato, Mixed Vegetables, and Dessert.

After the luncheon, take an optional side trip to the nearby Connecticut Trolley Museum. The museum preserves over 70 pieces of rolling stock comprised of trolleys, railcars, locomotives, and railroad work equipment. The Museum doesn’t officially open for the season until April 2, but we’ve arranged for a special talk by Timothy Lesniak, the Museum’s Corporate Secretary, on the trolley era and the museum collections. There’s no set charge for this presentation, but we do need a headcount, and there will be a freewill “kitty” to support this non-profit organization.

Times: 9:30 - 10:15 Registration, coffee and pastries, and visiting.
10:15 – 10:30 Welcome and announcements
10:30 - 11:30 “Capt. Stephen Buckland’s Company of Artillery,” Lance Kozikowski.
11:30 - 12:00 Break.
12:00 - 1:00 Luncheon and visiting.
1:30 – 2:30 Optional side trip to the Connecticut Trolley Museum.

Places: La Notte Restaurant & Banquet Facilities, East Windsor, CT
Connecticut Trolley Museum, 58 North Rd. (CT Rt. 140), East Windsor, CT

2010 Spring Luncheon is Saturday, March 27

This year's Spring Luncheon will be held Saturday, March 27, 2010 at the La Notte Restaurant & Banquet Falicities, East Windsor. Our speaker will be Lance Kozikowski, who will be in the uniform of a soldier in Capt. Stephen Buckland’s Company of Artillery interpreting the life of a blacksmith who went off to the Revolutionary War and came home to find his shop in ruins and with no money to pay his taxes. The program will feature original documents and artifacts. Those who attended last fall’s program will remember Mr. Kozikowski for the outstanding overview he provided us at Old Newgate Prison. Watch for more details coming soon!