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The Road to Busytown: Richard Scarry’s Life in Fairfield County
Inspired by Connecticut communities, Richard Scarry invented and illustrated some of the most beloved characters and communities in children’s literature.
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Lobsters and Oysters and Clams: A Short History of Seafood in Connecticut
The ocean’s bounty has been savored along the Connecticut coastline for as long as humans have been around to bring it on shore.
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Birthplace of the Gerber Baby – Who Knew?
Westport’s artist Dorothy Hope Smith used her neighbor, Ann Turner, as inspiration for her iconic Gerber Baby trademark drawing.
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Morton Biskind Warned the World About DDT
A Westport physician named Morton Biskind became one of the first to warn the world about the dangers of DDT. His work ultimately helped inspire the writings of Rachel Carson.
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Preserving Connecticut’s Natural Beauty: Connecticut’s First State Parks
Sherwood Island, Mount Tom, Macedonia Brook, and Kent Falls are among the earliest lands set aside as the parks movement took hold in the state.
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Vivien Kellems Takes On the IRS
Reformer Vivien Kellems fought her most famous battle against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as she sought tax reform for businesses and single people.
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Jim Flora Captures 20th-Century Pop Culture
From jazz album covers to magazines and children’s books, Rowayton artist Jim Flora created works that helped document life in 20th-century America.
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Merritt Parkway Creates Scenic Gateway to New England
This Depression-era road improvement project sought to artfully balance the natural and built environments.
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Stevan Dohanos Captures Connecticut Life
Westport resident Stevan Dohanos was one of America’s top realist illustrators, producing more than 125 popular magazine covers, and over 300 designs for commemorative postage stamps.
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The Minute Man, Westport CT
On the morning of June 17, 1910, over a thousand Connecticut residents descended upon Westport for a patriotic, event-filled unveiling of The Minute Man monument.
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The Kewpies Buy A House in Westport
The Kewpies originally appeared as a comic strip in the Christmas issue of the 1909 Ladies Home Journal.
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The Battle for Cockenoe Island
In 1967, the United Illuminating Company proposed to build a nuclear power plant on Cockenoe Island off the coast of Westport, but grassroots activism ultimately scuttled that plan.
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Broadway Comes to Westport
The Westport Country Playhouse is meant to provide artists, students, and entertainers with a place to create and produce live theater experiences away from traditional big city theater districts.
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The Many Layers to Onion Farming in Westport
Westport’s fertile soil and ease of access by boat and rail once made it home to a thriving onion farming industry.
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Instruction by Mail: The Famous Artists School
The Famous Artists School in Westport once provided the premier correspondence training for those interested in an art career.
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Votes for A Woman: Sara Buek Crawford
As Connecticut’s first female statewide elected official and first female Secretary of State, Sara Crawford broke barriers for women throughout her career.
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Sloan Wilson, the Man in the Gray Flannel Suit, is Born – Today in History: May 8
On May 8, 1920, American author Sloan Wilson was born in Norwalk, Connecticut. Readers know Wilson best for his 1955 book The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit.
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