There is, oddly, no actual monument to the Revolutionary War (or earlier action, including the ill-fated Havana expedition of 1762 during which eight New Hartford men died, a major toll for such a small town).  However, the Town Hill Bell is, at the least, a reminder.  Men from New Hartford were involved in the Revolution from the beginning, including a slightly odd dash to Lexington and Concord, which turned back at Turkey Hills in Granby when it was apparent that the fighting was (for the moment) over.

The Civil War is well recognized.  The Soldiers and Sailors Monument, which stands in the North Village Cemetery, is a sobering reminder, especially when the number of names on it is tallied.  It was erected in 1892 and dedicated in 1893.

World War One is not so immediately obvious: the simple stone with its bronze tablet is easy to miss, though its location outside Town Hall is prominent.

World War Two is commerated in Pine Meadow, on the green ( Chapin Park).  This monument, erected in the 1950′s, is daunting in its numbers: 212 men from New Hartford served during that war.  From the last names it is clear that many were relatives or brothers.  The list of names takes up the entire front, with the center panel dedicated to those who died in action.

Its back, however, is equally sobering for it records the actions since then: Korea 1950-1955, Vietnam 1961-1975, Grenada and Lebanon 1982-1984, Panama 1989-1990, Persian Gulf 1990.  In all these wars men and women from New Hartford have served.

At some point, in the coming years, Afghanistan and Iraq should be added for there have been members of the armed services who have done tours of duty in both areas who have come from New Hartford.

However, in most places, the trough was purely utilitarian.  They were placed either in convenient town centers and supplied with water from the public water system, or in more remote areas where a horse might need to pause (as it might be at the top of a hill) and where a spring could provide water.  Obviously, river and stream crossings also supplied water.  These were generally wooden and it is likely that none of these, once ubiquitous, roadside icons still survive.  Though, the springs that served them can sometimes still be found.  There is one on River Road in Barkhamsted, between Pleasant Valley and Riverton, for example.

In the center of New Hartford there were several troughs.  At the intersection of Bridge, Church, and Route 44 a large riveted barrel served as the trough.  This was a very utilitarian one; but it served well.  It later was used at Asa and Irving Burdick’s dairy farm on Town Hill as a trough for the dairy cattle.  Legend has it that this barrel also served as the local drunk tank, in the old meaning of the phrase.

A more ornate water fountain was found at the Community House, now the Post Office lot.  Modeled on European, multi-level fountains this was on private property, but nonetheless served the public.  When drinking troughs were no longer used, this fountain found its way to a private home in New Hartford, where it remains to this day.

The church that stood there in 1910 had been built in 1829, a postcard perfect of example of Connecticut Congregational Church architecture: a classical white church surrounded by a small farming village and green fields.  But even as it was being built, its congregation was leaving.   By the 1840’s, the centers of Nepaug and North Village were rapidly expanding industrial centers.  The villagers saw no reason to climb all the way up Town Hill, building instead two new churches: North Congregational and Nepaug to serve their communities.  Town Hill’s population was declining as marginal farms were abandoned, what congregation was left would eventually shift to the other churches.  The church gradually fell out of use and in to disrepair.  By 1910 it stood vacant, damaged by lightning and time.

On that January day the steeple was lifted by the wind; it snapped off just above the bell and flipped backwards.  It had been well built, the roof was old, and, as luck had it, it fell just right.  The spire went right through the roof and lodged in the old balcony.  This failure may have been due to the removal, presumably accidental, of the iron tie rods that secured the spire.  The roof patched; but the steeple was never rebuilt.  In 1929, the church was completely removed, only its bell and the foundation stones remain.  A few pieces of the church can still be found: some deacon’s chairs in a private home, a finial at the Historical Society, and rumor has it, quite a few floorboards and beams in houses built around that time on Town Hill.

The memory of the event survives though, enshrined in any number of postcards and for many years as part of the town’s official seal.

An agreement was reached that the two towns could use the Compensating Reservoir for recreation.  This was possible because the Compensating is not a drinking water supply, instead it maintains the appropriate stream flow downstream of the Nepaug and Barkhamsted Reservoirs.  Stanclift Cove, therefore, was created as a park open only to residents of those two towns.  The MDC would later open another area as a recreation site for the general public; but Stanclift Cove remains an essentially private park.

It was named after the Stanclift family, who had farmed in that area for many years.  They had been prominent in the affairs of both towns, serving in local offices and running a livery and freight service.

The Historical society did create a short walking tour pamphlet that covers some of these buildings, it is available at the society.

In 1873, one of the main growers in town was Mr. Gilman.  His farm was located in the area where the Pine Meadow school now stands.  His primary business was dairy farming, and with 30 cows he was a major dairy product supplier for the neighbouring factory houses. However, he also grew hay, corn, and tobacco on a 30 acre meadow.   This meadow was, in fact, the floodplain of the Farmington River.  Today, this meadow’s tendency to flood has been reduced due to the construction of a dyke following the 1955 Flood.  But at the time, the nature of this flood-plain meant that the field was rich soil.   Consequently, the quality of Gilman’s tobacco was considered to rival the Connecticut River valley product and commanded the highest prices of all the growers in the town.

Freeborn Garretson Baker took his first and second name from a prominent Methodist minister of the early 1800′s, Freeborn Garretson.  Baker was a native of Bakersville, born August 19, 1813.  He taught singing schools in Bakerville, Winsted, Torrington, and other neighbouring towns.  He also led concerts, probably held in the dance hall in the Bakerville Tannery, and often played the cello as an accompanist.   In 1856, he moved to Wheaton, Illinois were he was the first director of music and remained a professor until his death.  He was well regarded by the university, and became a Trustee of Wheaton in 1857.  The 1882 Register of Wheaton College stated that: “He was beloved as a neighbor, respected as a man, revered as a Christian, and honored as an officer of the College and the Church.”

He died in Bakerville, July 12, 1879. His funeral was held in Bakersville.  Ironically, until his grand-nephew stepped in, there was no music.

Now for the next project?

In other amusing news, I came across this newspaper clipping in a scrapbook, the New Hartford Historical Society was founded in October, 1938.  The first board members were John Marshall Holcomb, Lucy M. Creevey, Harriet M. Stone, Harold P. Shapiro, Margaret Sinnott, and Harry M. Smith.

It managed an historical room in the old library, equipped with several school desks, an old foot stove from the Town Hill Church, a pair of andirons, and a variety of books.

We haven’t moved far, just down the street; but we do have a much larger book and artifact collection.