Museum - Ridgefield Historical Society in Ridgefield, Connecticut

GRANT WORK BEGINS The RIdgefield Historical Society has brought together a Battlefield Advisory Group, comprising both local and state representation, to oversee the two-year National Park Service American Battlefield Protection Program grant awarded earlier this year. Sharon Dunphy is the Project Coordinator and recruited and serves on the Battlefield Advisory Group, which includes: Kay Ables, Ridgefield Historical Society board member and Ridgefield Town Historian; Julie C...armelich, State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) Historian; Mary Dunne, SHPO State Historic Preservation Officer and Certified Local Government & Grants Coordinator; Erin Fink, SHPO; Keith Jones, former president of the Ridgefield Historical Society and author of Farmers Against the Crown, about the Battle of Ridgefield; Cathy Labadia, SHPO Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer and Staff Archaeologist; Rudy Marconi First Selectman, Town of Ridgefield; Dan O’Brien, Chairman, Ridgefield Historic District Commission; Robert Ross, Executive Director, Connecticut Office of Military Affairs; Jenny Scofield, SHPO National Register Coordinator; Sarah Sportman, State Archaeologist; and Walter Woodward, Connecticut State Historian. Proposals for research are being solicited and it’s anticipated that the work will begin in the new year. For more information, visit the Ridgefield Historical Society website https://ridgefieldhistoricalsociety.org See more

HISTORY NUGGET (From The Ridgefield Encyclopedia (c) Jack Sanders) FLAT ROCK: term used as early as 1716 (ye Flatt Rock Ridge) for area south of village generally along Wilton Road West; named for a massive stratum of rock that surfaces mostly between St. John’s Road and Wilton Road West, but which can also be seen as far north as Prospect Ridge and even in Danbury; said to be part of the same shelf on which Manhattan Island’s skyscrapers have their foundations. [Ridgefield Names Jack Sanders] #RidgefieldHistoricalSociety #ridgefieldstreams

HISTORY NUGGET (From The RIdgefield Encyclopedia (c) Jack Sanders) BIRARELLI, JAMES, (1915-1943), was the first Ridgefield native serviceman to die in World War II; killed April 23, 1943, when his small patrol was ambushed by a vastly superior force in North Africa, said his Silver Star commendation. Private Birarelli refused to surrender. He opened fire on the enemy and assisted in driving them off. As a result of this action, he was mortally wounded. He was son of Mr. and Mrs. Nazzareno Birarelli of Colonial Park [Who Was Who in Ridgefield by Jack Sanders]

HISTORY NUGGET (From The RIdgefield Encyclopedia (c) Jack Sanders) A DYING FALL: Murder mystery by Hildegarde Dolson, Lippincott, 1973: The victim supposedly slips on a step in the Aldrich Museum sculpture garden, falls and is mortally impaled upon a sharp work of art. Dolson lived in Lewisboro, married to mystery novelist Richard Lockridge.

SCOTT HOUSE JOURNAL As we approach 2020’s Election Day, the Ridgefield Historical Society’s quarterly newsletter, The Scott House Journal, looks at voting in RIdgefield over the centuries and the anniversary of the 19th Amendment. It also features a collection from our archives that gives a glimpse into the life of an Irish immigrant, Luke Kilcoyne, who came here from County Sligo when he was 17. Newly elected president of the Historical Society Tracy Seem writes her first President’s Message, looking ahead to a busy year. https://ridgefieldhistoricalsociety.org #RidgefieldHistoricalSociety #ridgefieldstreams

HALLOWEEN 2020 It’s not Snowtober in 2011 and it’s not Hurricane Sandy in 2012, but Halloween 2020 is different. We’ll remember the scarecrows on Main Street, accompanied by Social Distance reminders, and we’ll remember the Halloween drive-by events; we’ll remember cloth masks and Halloween masks. The Ridgefield Historical Society wishes everyone a happy and safe Halloween; we’re collecting evidence of the Covid-19 pandemic for our archives, like this picture by Laurie Campbell. If you have images or thoughts about this unusual Halloween, please visit our website, https://ridgefieldhistoricalsociety.org/documenting-the-co/, for information on how to share them with future generations of Ridgefielders. #RidgefieldHistoricalSociety #ridgefieldstreams

HISTORY NUGGET (From The Ridgefield Encyclopedia (c) Jack Sanders) TULIPANI BROTHERS: Five sons of Vincenzo and Evelina Branchini Tulipani served in WW2 and all returned, living the rest of their lives in Ridgefield. Aldo Anthony Tulipani (1916-2003), RHS 1934, was in the Army in the Philippines. He had a long career as a mail carrier in Ridgefield, and also as an accordion teacher (his car’s license plate, SQZBX was short for squeezebox). Joseph Anthony Tulipani (1918-2004...), RHS 1937, was one of the first Ridgefielders to fight in the war; the member of an Army radar unit served in Australia, the jungles of New Guinea, and the Philippines and was with General Douglas MacArthur’s forces in the liberation of the Philippines. He kept elaborate diaries of his experiences. After the war he was the superintendent of Ward Acres for many years and also a semi-professional photographer. Albert Nazzareno Joseph Tulipani (1920-1994), RHS 1938, served in the Navy aboard the destroyer U.S.S. Wilson, escorting convoys to Russia on the Murmansk run and hunting German submarines, then in the Pacific in such battles as Wake Island and Guadalcanal. Also served on aircraft carriers. Back home, he was a guitar teacher who also played professionally in the region until the early 1960s, and worked at Brunetti’s Market and later at the Grand Union. Alfred Anthony Tulipani (1921-2013), joined the Army in 1942 and spent most of his service in Canada with an anti-aircraft unit, guarding Great Lakes locks. He maintained that his wife, Mary, was the first war bride in Ridgefield. The two met in 1943 at a Woolworth’s in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and were married a year later. After the war, Alfred became a superintendent of local estates, including Casagmo, as well as a landscaper. John Vincent Tulipani (1922-2002), RHS 1941, served with the Navy SeaBees in Hawaii, the Marshall Islands, and in the Philippines. He also played on the Navy All-Star Baseball Team with many former professionals. After the war he worked as a plumber and established his own plumbing business. All five brothers were musicians, playing together in the Tulipani Orchestra and with the Sagebrush Serenaders. #RidgefieldHistoricalSociety #ridgefieldstreams See more

HISTORY NUGGET (From The Ridgefield Encyclopedia (c) Jack Sanders) CARLO SCAGLIA (1889-1918), a native of Italy, came to this country with his parents and entered the Army in May 1918. Four months later, he was dead, blown up by a shell during combat in France. His parents were farm hands on the A.C. Fraser estate on West Mountain. It was not Scaglia’s first military experience; he had spent three years as a private in the Italian army. He is buried in the Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery in France where his monument incorrectly spells his name as Sgaglio. [Notable Ridgefielders, Ridgefield Press, 2000]

HISTORY NUGGET (From The RIdgefield Encyclopedia (c) Jack Sanders) EVERETT E. ROBERTS JR. (1916-2007), a Ridgefield native, was a World War II hero, receiving the Legion of Merit for service while executive officer aboard the destroyer escort USS Samuel B. Roberts in the Battle off Samar; RHS ca. 1936; Naval Academy, 1940; career officer, retiring 1958; held degree in bioradiation and served many years as military liaison to Atomic Energy Commission; later helped develop ballistic missile early warning system; died Lewistown, Pa. at age 66; son of E. Earl Roberts. [Who Was Who in RIdgefield Jack Sanders]

HISTORY NUGGET (From The Ridgefield Encyclopedia (c) Jack Sanders) JOSEPH ALOYSIUS ROACH, (1896-1948) was wounded in World War I and held in a prison camp, but lived with his injuries and contributed considerably to his community until he finally succumbed at the age of 53. He became the first commander of the American Legion Post, was a grand knight of the Knights of Columbus, served on the Board of Education, was also active in Boy Scouting, and operated a stone-cutting and monument business of his father. [Who Was Who in Ridgefield Jack Sanders] #RidgefieldHistoricalSociety #ridgefieldstreams

HISTORY NUGGET (From The Ridgefield Encyclopedia (c) Jack Sanders) FREDERIC REMINGTON (1861-1909), a native of Canton, N.Y., was a noted sculptor, painter and illustrator of the American West. He studied art at Yale and went to the West, where he worked and drew illustrations for Harper’s and other magazines. He lived and worked for many years in New Rochelle, gaining an international reputation for his paintings and sculptures. He also wrote several books on the West. He moved in 1909 to a house he built off Barry Avenue, probably to be closer to lifelong friend, A. Barton Hepburn, who also came from Canton. He died six months later of appendicitis. [Who Was Who in Ridgefield Jack Sanders] #RidgefieldHistoricalSociety #ridgefieldstreams

THE 1918 PANDEMIC A second wave of the "Spanish Flu" pandemic was washing over the Northeast in the fall of 1918. CT History's Today in Connecticut History for Oct. 14 https://todayincthistory.com//october-14-hartford-shuts-d/ tells how the state capitol was coping. For an account of Ridgefield's experience in 1918, see the Ridgefield Historical Society's Scott House Journal: https://ridgefieldhistoricalsociety.org/scott-house-journa/

REBEL or LOYALIST? The Ridgefield Historical Society will present a live Zoom webinar on Sunday, Oct. 18, hosted by Natalie Belanger, adult programs manager at the Connecticut Historical Society, in which she asks, Which side are you on? Her question is one that every single person in Connecticut had to answer in 1775, as the 13 colonies began a rebellion against British rule. Loyalty was not only a matter of words or opinion. For soldiers and civilians alike, loyalty could mean loss of fortune, of friends, and even of life. The seminar will take place from 3 to 4 p.m. and is free. To reserve a spot, visit https://ridgefieldhistoricalsociety.org. Space is limited. The program is supported by CT Humanities. #RidgefieldHistoricalSociety #ridgefieldstreams

HISTORY NUGGET (From The Ridgefield Encyclopedia (c) Jack Sanders) PEESPUNK appears quite a few times in very early deeds, reflecting a little-known custom practiced by the American Indians. First cited in a 1712 deed in which the proprietors granted land lying on both sides of Peespunk Spring; eventually, deeds simply referred to land at Peespunk. The word, from pesuppau-og, meaning they are sweating, appears in the languages of the Narragansett and the Paugusett tri...bes; the latter lived in parts of Fairfield County. A peespunk or sweat lodge was a hut or cave where native men built hot fires and took ceremonial sweat baths, subsequently cooling off in nearby water (the spring). Peespunk seems to have been on a West Mountain hillside on the west side of North Salem Road near the New York line. [Ridgefield Names Jack Sanders] #RidgefieldHistoricalSociety #ridgefieldstreams See more

HISTORY NUGGET (From The Ridgefield Encyclopedia (c) Jack Sanders) OLD BURYING GROUND, The: Town’s first cemetery; extant section stands on Wilton Road East below Main Street and just north of Creamery Lane, but has no gravestones left standing; northern portion was developed ca. 1850 for road and homelots after graves were moved to Titicus Cemetery; was laid out Nov. 25, 1708 and at one time contained the graves of 40 pioneers, now listed on a granite monument in cemetery; one of few pieces of original public land still owned by town government; maintained by Ridgefield Garden Club. [Ridgefield Names Jack Sanders] #RidgefieldHistoricalSociety #ridgefieldstreams

HISTORY NUGGET (From The Ridgefield Encyclopedia (c) Jack Sanders) NOD: Section of Ridgefield just north of Wilton and west of Branchville (also a section of northern Wilton, probably the source of the name); probably Biblical reference to land of Nod, place where Cain went after slaying Abel (Genesis 4:16) thus may suggest a place not very well thought of, perhaps due to hills, rocky soils or distance from the village of Norwalk. NOD HILL: U.S. Geological Survey maps (1949-1970) name for hill just east of Nod Hill Road, a little north of the Beers family cemetery, reaching 660 feet above sea level. [Ridgefield Names Jack Sanders] #RidgefieldHistoricalSociety #ridgefieldstreams

REMEMBER WHEN? In the latest installment of the Ridgefield Historical Society Covid-19 Archive Project video series, Ridgefielder John Preli, director of corporate business controls for the IBM Corporation, as well as a professor at Sacred Heart University and UConn, talks about how supply chains affected everyone as the Covid-19 pandemic took hold. A case in point: where did all the toilet paper go? Subscribe to the Ridgefield Historical Society channel on YouTube; you can find the link to Mr. Preli’s talk on our website, https://ridgefieldhistoricalsociety.org. #RidgefieldHistoricalSociety #ridgefieldstreams

HISTORY NUGGET (From The Ridgefield Encyclopedia (c) Jack Sanders) MAINE, FLORENE, (1896-1980), was a nationally known antiques specialist and dealer who lived at 113 West Lane at her death; business called Red Petticoat Antiques; came here 1928, operating store on Route 7 opposite Florida Hill Road until 1966; after brief period in Wilton, bought antique West Lane house in 1971; she sold her first antique at the age of 5 a jewel box that had belonged to the Duchess de Orleans. The buyer, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, paid 4,000 times what she had paid for it. [Ridgefield Press, 11/20/1980, Who Was Who in RIdgefield Jack Sanders] #RidgefieldHistoricalSociety #ridgefieldstreams