Orange Historical Society
Last updated: 08/23/16
New Haven - Derby Railroad Open House
The New Haven & Derby Railroad would like to extend an invitation to all train lovers for an Open House. The open house will be held on Saturday, October 1, 2016 from 10am to 12pm. Please be advised that the New Haven Derby Railroad is located in the basement of the Academy Building, 605 Orange Center Road. Renovations on the scenic displays are still in the works, but all the trains are running beautifully.
Be sure to click on the train icon above to read about the New Haven Derby Railroad before your visit, or simply select Town History from the menu bar.
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Calendar of Events
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Shop Amazon Smile! Shop for a good cause and donate to your favorite charity! Please consider the Orange Historical Society as your charity of choice, and click the link below. 
Helping Hands is looking for gently used items of all kinds. OHS gets 13% of every sale! |
****** THE ACADEMY ANTIQUES SHOP ****** SATURDAYS, 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. The Academy Antique Shop is open Saturdays year-round with exciting antiques and collectibles in all price ranges. Come see our collection of political pins, and a newly acquired collection of a collection of Victorian perfume bottles. A recent donation of Connecticut postcards will also fill your collection, so if postcards are your hobby, we have a wonderful collection of Connecticut towns and New England cards dating from the early 1900's. Come browse our family photos dating from the late 1800's for instant relatives and a wonderful collection of tintypes. Who knows, you may find a long, lost relative. We are located at 605 Orange Center Road across from the Green. For information, call: 203 795-3106. Email: orangehistorical@yahoo.com ************************ |
Meet & Greet with The Chamber of Commerce at the Bryan-Andrew House
The Orange Chamber of Commerce met at the Bryan-Andrew House recently with good friends, good food and chilled white wine. The Chamber meets every month for an "After Hours" Event, where members meet and greet to network at the end of a busy day. The Bryan-Andrew House staff, Kathy Steinberg, Jan Clarke, Nina Ruckes, Frances Vadney and Ginny Reinhard all led tours through the rooms of this magnificent example of an early 18th century home and members were enthusiastic to be in such a wonderfully old homestead. Full menu dinners can be held with food and beverages brought into the home. Fires will be lit in the three fireplaces and period dressed docents will be on hand for tours to give the party a genuine colonial feeling. Rental fee is $200.00 for an evening. For information, call 203-795-3106.
Incredible High Quality Photo Gallery in the New Haven Register
A new and incredible photo gallery of the Bryan-Andrew House has been displayed in the New Haven Register Media Center! On December 31, 2105, Catherine Avalone of the New Haven Register joined Frances, Jan, and Ginny for an amazing day of fun at the house! Click here to see our photo gallery!
There's no place like the Nathan Bryan-William Andrew Home
The Orange Historical Society has recently hosted a birthday party for a resident whose wife planned the celebration from soup to nuts. The Nathan Bryan-William Andrew house is open to the public by appointment, but the special part of this 1740 house is its availability for parties, meetings and just spur of the moment visits. For details on this most unique venue, call us at 203-795-3106 and leave a message. ALL calls will be returned.
Does this look like fun?
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Dennis Stone's 158Year Old Grape Vine
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You bet it was. Jan Clarke holds the ladder for Elaine Ihlenfeld as she
reaches into the vine for the third picking of this fine Concord grape. Where's Ginny Reinhard? She was picking more grapes that grew under the canopy that this historical vine created during the hot, dry summer. Making jelly became a fun project as the beautiful , dark concord grapes were turned into jars of deliciousness. Already many have been sold at the Country Fair and are available at the Academy Museum , 605 Orange Center Road. The Antique Shop is open every Saturday from 10:00-3:00 so get out the peanut butter and come on down. |
The OHS staff recently harvested grapes from the 158 year old grape vine planted by Dennis Stone at his home on Main Street (Orange Center Road) across from the Congregational Church. The vine was not tended this summer, growing wildly here and there but in its finest year in our memory. It yielded over 30 pounds of the most wonderful tasting grapes.
One Hundred & thirty-seven jars were processed for jelly. At one point, when Mr. Stone lived in Twelve Mile Creek, Kansas, he asked his nephews Clark and Fred Stone to send him some shoots from his grapevine. He would be so proud of its success here in Orange. I bet he made wine with his share and Mrs. Stone jelly..what do you think? |
American Girl Doll Summer Camp Event
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Recently a summer camp for the American Girl Doll was held at the Stone-Otis House with 13 girls all carrying backpacks full of dolls; and their
clothes. The Guilford Keeping Society's Pat Lovelace shared the life history of the dolls in the collection, reading about the individual times and places each doll represents.
In addition, the children were treated to three days of historical crafts, paper dolls, sharing and snacks associated with each doll's life in history. The culminating activity was the presentation of a table full of dolls' clothes and the girls were invited to "borrow" them to dress their dolls in something "new". They were then invited to a "fashion" show with their doll and their newly acquired outfit. A fall tea is planned for the girls to experience life in the Victorian manner, complete with china cups and cucumber sandwiches.
Lea Turner, Jan Clarke and Ginny Reinhard helped Miss Lovelace and everyone a wonderful time. Some of them have arranged to meet at each others' homes to share their collections. It is after all a collectible doll and one to be enjoyed in the future.
clothes. The Guilford Keeping Society's Pat Lovelace shared the life history of the dolls in the collection, reading about the individual times and places each doll represents.
In addition, the children were treated to three days of historical crafts, paper dolls, sharing and snacks associated with each doll's life in history. The culminating activity was the presentation of a table full of dolls' clothes and the girls were invited to "borrow" them to dress their dolls in something "new". They were then invited to a "fashion" show with their doll and their newly acquired outfit. A fall tea is planned for the girls to experience life in the Victorian manner, complete with china cups and cucumber sandwiches.
Lea Turner, Jan Clarke and Ginny Reinhard helped Miss Lovelace and everyone a wonderful time. Some of them have arranged to meet at each others' homes to share their collections. It is after all a collectible doll and one to be enjoyed in the future.
Potluck with a Purpose!
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The evening of April 21, at the Bryan-Andrew House, was buzzing with activity as Jan Clarke, seated (left) and Ginny Reinhard (right) in first photo, from OHS hosted the Milford Preservation Trust for an evening of celebration and camaraderie. The group assembled for a meeting focused on the preservation of endangered historic homes in Milford, their mission being to bring about local legislation for the saving of homes which are historically significant but have owners who are in need of selling them for economic and other reasons. These homes are often lost to commercial development, cluster housing, etc. Once down, they are gone forever. We encourage calls to your legislators!
The group brought a wonderful selection of foods to share in one of the area's oldest homes. The fact that Nathan Bryan was a descendent of Alexander Bryan, one of the original Milford settlers, made this an appropriate place for their visit. The 1740 Bryan-Andrew House is a case study in the retention of historic properties through historical societies assisted by state and local efforts and grant funding. You, your family, friends and business associates can plan a dinner at the house by contacting Ginny at 203 795-3106 for details. You provide the food and beverages and period dressed docents will give you a tour. We guarantee you will enjoy dining in this very fine, old home.
News from the Bryan-Andrew House!
The bee hive oven gets tested after the flue was exposed.
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Buttery shelves from a MA home ca. 1760. Original lath on the wall and ceiling has been plastered over.
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Joe Carney inspects his work.
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We're in the newspaper again. Click here! The 9-ft Keeping Room fireplace was restored several years ago and on the several visits has warmed the guests as they roamed through the house, feeling how it was to live in 1740 so many years ago. One thing became apparent to restoration contractor Edd Oberg and mason Joe Carney, that the beehive oven didn't draw correctly. The smoke from some small pieces of kindling reached into the room. Upon inspection, the team found that the flue was hidden with a half dozen bricks and 2 inches of concrete. They went to work removing the material and without a hitch, a fire, built in the oven took off and burned with great ease. The two of them waited until Ginny could arrive and they inaugurated the oven for future use. Now the entire Keeping Room fireplace is ready for some hearth-cooked dinners.
Open House
The 19th of October has come and gone but not without excited visitors as they walked through the oldest house in the Town of Orange. Fires were lit in the parlor, hall and keeping room with visitors admiring the effort put forth by the OHS to bring the house back to its beginnings. The CT Trust for Historic Preservation matching grant, which the society received, has been spent plastering the walls, resurfacing feathered edge walls, laying down original flooring and restoring the parlor fireplace which had been dismantled sometime in the 1930's and replaced with modern firebrick. Although the original side walls had been removed, the inner hearth was covered with the yellow brick and when removed revealed the original hand made bricks as originally laid in 1740.
One aspect of the home which is unique is the porch. Known to us as a foyer, one would step into this area from the front door and be met with a painted feathered edge wood wall in the best color available. For the Bryan family, Prussian blue was the color of choice and since the original walls had been removed, OHS bought old ones from a home in Massachusetts. Karan Oberg, historian and artist, replicated the original color using a section of doorway that had once been covered with wallpaper.
The house is available for families and groups for a tour, a meeting or a meal. Until the society has facilities to offer food to the public, people are invited to bring their own meal, celebrate a birthday, a new member in the family or a reunion of friends and family. The atmosphere is so inviting and brings one back to quiet times where hustle and bustle were not part of the daily 18th century lifestyle.
The society is fortunate to have found two restoration contractors for the interior with Joe Carney, a master mason and refinishing the wood walls and placement of the floors by Edd Oberg. The original restoration, over the past 14 years, was ably handled by Wess Corjuc of Historic Preservation and his brother Joseph.
For information call 203 795-3106 and leave a message. All calls will be returned.
Open House
The 19th of October has come and gone but not without excited visitors as they walked through the oldest house in the Town of Orange. Fires were lit in the parlor, hall and keeping room with visitors admiring the effort put forth by the OHS to bring the house back to its beginnings. The CT Trust for Historic Preservation matching grant, which the society received, has been spent plastering the walls, resurfacing feathered edge walls, laying down original flooring and restoring the parlor fireplace which had been dismantled sometime in the 1930's and replaced with modern firebrick. Although the original side walls had been removed, the inner hearth was covered with the yellow brick and when removed revealed the original hand made bricks as originally laid in 1740.
One aspect of the home which is unique is the porch. Known to us as a foyer, one would step into this area from the front door and be met with a painted feathered edge wood wall in the best color available. For the Bryan family, Prussian blue was the color of choice and since the original walls had been removed, OHS bought old ones from a home in Massachusetts. Karan Oberg, historian and artist, replicated the original color using a section of doorway that had once been covered with wallpaper.
The house is available for families and groups for a tour, a meeting or a meal. Until the society has facilities to offer food to the public, people are invited to bring their own meal, celebrate a birthday, a new member in the family or a reunion of friends and family. The atmosphere is so inviting and brings one back to quiet times where hustle and bustle were not part of the daily 18th century lifestyle.
The society is fortunate to have found two restoration contractors for the interior with Joe Carney, a master mason and refinishing the wood walls and placement of the floors by Edd Oberg. The original restoration, over the past 14 years, was ably handled by Wess Corjuc of Historic Preservation and his brother Joseph.
For information call 203 795-3106 and leave a message. All calls will be returned.
President's Corner
The Nathan Bryan-William Andrew house was buzzing on November 4th with visitors from the Red Hat Society. Meeting once a month, the women were invited to bring their lunch to the 1740 home to enjoy the 18th century atmosphere. While the weather is turning cold, the large keeping room fireplace welcomed the group, giving a true feeling of living in the past.
Surrounded by the recent restorations of plaster walls and original floors, the smell of corn chowder and a fall salad with its colonial touch of cranberries and leafy lettuce rounded out the wonderful experience that members Kathy Steinberg, Jan Clarke and Ginny Reinhard presented to the ladies. Just a few days later, 21 members of area historical societies met at the home to discuss common concerns and how to present history to the public and ways to encourage school systems to arrange for tours of the various buildings each of the societies own or manage. Here in Orange, we have 3 such buildings and need to secure the cooperation of our school administration. A recent trip by Cub Scout Troop 922 was such a pleasure with 8 young boys eager to see how different the 1740 Bryan-Andrew house was from the visit they had to 1830 Stone-Otis House last year. They were surprised with what they saw and didn't see at the homestead. Their questions were thoughtful and their answers creative as I took them through each room, telling about the families that lived there. The evening was too short but homework awaited. Night time at the Bryan-Andrew House is indeed an enchanted place with candle-style lighting, fires in the fireplaces and the smell of various herbs hanging in the buttery. It was a common practice in the 18th century to hang them in various parts of the house as fireplace smoke and cooking smells lingered. Come visit us, bring your family and even bring your dinner. Sitting at the 1760 keeping room table can bring you back to quieter times. Like me, you won't want to leave.
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More From the Bryan-Andrew House!
Edd & Karan Oberg in the porch.
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Joseph Carney finishing up the Keeping Room ceiling.
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Edd Oberg hand finishing a feathered edge wall.
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The Prussian blue porch walls were recreated by Karan using color remaining on a door frame.
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This fireplace was rebuilt with old bricks replacing a modern one built in the early 1930's.
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Keeping Room fireplace with useable iron cookware.
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Laying original flooring becomes an interesting puzzle.
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The buttery or pantry with a work table.
The bowl and ladle are from the Andrew family.
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The hall where the family would spend time spinning, weaving and cooking simple meals.
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The hall fireplace. Portraits are of the period but the couple is unknown at this time.
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OHS T-shirts
are selling like hotcakes. Limited stock! |
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See the
Join, Visit, Shop page. Get yours today! |
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New OHS logo!
In May of 1822, a petition was presented to the General Assembly by members of both North Milford and West Haven communities to be incorporated as a separate town. Upon the resolve, a new town was established with boundaries set out to encompass the two communities.
A committee was chosen to select a name for the town and with some differences of opinion, the group chose Orange. Although no longer tied to British rule, with the support given to the Connecticut colony in 1687 by the English monarch, William of Orange, it was agreed to name the new town in his honor. His coat of arms became official in 1972, when the First Federal Savings Bank of New Haven presented First Selectman Ralph Capecelatro with the official Town flag, designed by Orange residents Robert Hiza and Curt Thompson.
The Orange Historical Society has used the center portion of the coat of arms as their logo that was depicted on the original official Town flag but has since changed to the original English version which includes the lion and the unicorn with other symbols of English royalty as seen in the coat of arms throughout history. The logo graces the bottom of each page of this website, as well as being used in our newsletter and on the new T-shirts.
A committee was chosen to select a name for the town and with some differences of opinion, the group chose Orange. Although no longer tied to British rule, with the support given to the Connecticut colony in 1687 by the English monarch, William of Orange, it was agreed to name the new town in his honor. His coat of arms became official in 1972, when the First Federal Savings Bank of New Haven presented First Selectman Ralph Capecelatro with the official Town flag, designed by Orange residents Robert Hiza and Curt Thompson.
The Orange Historical Society has used the center portion of the coat of arms as their logo that was depicted on the original official Town flag but has since changed to the original English version which includes the lion and the unicorn with other symbols of English royalty as seen in the coat of arms throughout history. The logo graces the bottom of each page of this website, as well as being used in our newsletter and on the new T-shirts.
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The Society
Founded in 1964, the Orange Historical Society strives to collect and preserve those items of history that pertain to the settlement of Orange as well as the surrounding area.
In addition to protecting the history and the future of the Town of Orange, the Society maintains the Stone-Otis House, a restored 1830's homestead, The Academy, which was built in 1878 and now serves as a museum housing the Mary Rebecca Woodruff Research Center, and the Bryan-Andrew House, a 1740 residence built by one of the earliest Orange families in the area then known as Bryan's Farms.
The Stone-Otis House at 615 Orange Center Road is open by appointment. The Academy and antique shop 605 Orange Center Road is open Saturdays from 10:00-3:00 P.M The Bryan-Andrew House at 131 Old Tavern Road is open by appointment by call 203 795-6106 .
The Society is always seeking to increase membership and financial support for its preservation efforts. See the Join/Visit/Shop page.
For information call (203) 795-3106 Email to orangehistorical@yahoo.com with questions or comments about our site. Address U.S. mail to Orange Historical Society, P. O. Box 784, Orange, CT 06477. Also follow us on Face Book.
In addition to protecting the history and the future of the Town of Orange, the Society maintains the Stone-Otis House, a restored 1830's homestead, The Academy, which was built in 1878 and now serves as a museum housing the Mary Rebecca Woodruff Research Center, and the Bryan-Andrew House, a 1740 residence built by one of the earliest Orange families in the area then known as Bryan's Farms.
The Stone-Otis House at 615 Orange Center Road is open by appointment. The Academy and antique shop 605 Orange Center Road is open Saturdays from 10:00-3:00 P.M The Bryan-Andrew House at 131 Old Tavern Road is open by appointment by call 203 795-6106 .
The Society is always seeking to increase membership and financial support for its preservation efforts. See the Join/Visit/Shop page.
For information call (203) 795-3106 Email to orangehistorical@yahoo.com with questions or comments about our site. Address U.S. mail to Orange Historical Society, P. O. Box 784, Orange, CT 06477. Also follow us on Face Book.
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OHS Officers and Directors
President, Ginny Reinhard
Recording Secretary, Priscilla Searles Corresponding Secretary, Phyllis Gwatkin Treasurer, Marlene Silverstein |
Carla Birmingham, Director
Julie Davis, Director Denise Stein Director Kathy Steinberg, Director Nina Ruckes, Director Betty Hadlock Director |
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Website creator: Bob Belletzkie; Webmaster: Design Techniques LLC
Volunteer Staff Members: Frances Vadney, Jan Clarke, Jane Opper, Breitenbach Family, Marie Rossi, Sue DelPrete
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Website creator: Bob Belletzkie; Webmaster: Design Techniques LLC
Volunteer Staff Members: Frances Vadney, Jan Clarke, Jane Opper, Breitenbach Family, Marie Rossi, Sue DelPrete
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Visitors since 12/25/2012
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