Simsbury Free Library Announces May Events

In May, the Simsbury Free Library (SFL) continue its Drop-In Genealogy and Drop-In Book Club programs. In addition, it will host two history talks with Professor Tom Ratliff as well as an archeological investigation with Mark L. Banks, Ph.D.

Thursday, May 10, 2018, 3:00 p.m.

Food and Population – a More Modern Topic - with Professor Tom Ratliff

Two-hundred years ago, English economist Thomas Malthus predicted that the human population was growing faster than our ability to produce food and that sooner or later we would reach a point of crisis. Today there are seven times as many people on earth as there were in Malthus’ day and scientists are again predicting doomsday scenarios as we reach limits of available land and crop yields, and face problems of pollution, water shortages, and global warming.

The history of food is the history of human society. From our hunter-gatherer days to the present, the availability of food has shaped every aspect of our cultures, spanning the disciplines of geography, literature, biology, medicine, philosophy, religion, and more. Our most important technological advances have been those that improve the food supply and using food as a lens to study history provides a way to understand the past as well as connect to our modern world and the social, political, and economic issues of today.

Free to members, students, and teachers; $5 for non-members. To reserve a seat, call 860-408-1336 or email programs@simsburyfreelibrary.org.

Drop In Book Club - Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan

Tuesday, May 8, 2018, 11:15 a.m.

From simsonandshuster.com: “Immensely satisfying…an old-fashioned page-turner, tweaked by this witty and sophisticated writer…Egan is masterly at displaying mastery…she works a formidable kind of magic.” —Dwight Garner, The New York Times

The daring and magnificent novel from the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of A Visit from the Goon Squad.

Anna Kerrigan, nearly twelve years old, accompanies her father to visit Dexter Styles, a man who, she gleans, is crucial to the survival of her father and her family. She is mesmerized by the sea beyond the house and by some charged mystery between the two men.

‎Years later, her father has disappeared and the country is at war. Anna works at the Brooklyn Naval Yard, where women are allowed to hold jobs that once belonged to men, now soldiers abroad. She becomes the first female diver, the most dangerous and exclusive of occupations, repairing the ships that will help America win the war. One evening at a nightclub, she meets Dexter Styles again, and begins to understand the complexity of her father’s life, the reasons he might have vanished.

With the atmosphere of a noir thriller, Egan’s first historical novel follows Anna and Styles into a world populated by gangsters, sailors, divers, bankers, and union men. Manhattan Beach is a deft, dazzling, propulsive exploration of a transformative moment in the lives and identities of women and men, of America and the world. It is a magnificent novel by the author of A Visit from the Goon Squad, one of the great writers of our time.

New members in search of great book discussions and even better company are always welcome at the SFL’s Drop In Book Club. Readers are welcome any time they are interested in the SFL’s monthly book. Past book discussions have included The Boys in the Boat, The Gentleman of Moscow and The Noise of Time. Free. For more information, call 860-408-1336 or email simsburyfreelibrary@gmail.com.

British Raid on New London and Groton in September 1781 with Tom Ratliff

Thursday, May 17, 2018, 2:00 p.m.

On September 6, 1781, sixteen-hundred British troops led by Benedict Arnold raided New London, Connecticut, a key port in the American efforts to disrupt and destroy British supply lines from England. By the end of the day, much of New London was in flames and on the Groton side of the river, Fort Griswold was over-run, and more than two-thirds of the defenders had been killed or wounded. It was the bloodiest of all the British raids on Connecticut.

Free to members, students, and teachers; $5 for non-members. To make a reservation or for more information, call 860-408-1336 or email simsburyfreelibrary@gmail.com.

Drop-In Genealogy

Saturday, May 26, 2018, 10:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.

If you are researching your family tree, but don’t know where else to look to find your missing ancestors, bring in your tree and our genealogy librarian, Diane LeMay, can help with deciphering handwriting, online research, Massachusetts and French-Canadian research and much more.

Free to members; $5 for non-members. To make a reservation or for more information, call 860-408-1336 or email simsburyfreelibrary@gmail.com.

Archaeological Investigation of the Richard Smith Forge, Colebrook, with Marc L. Banks, Ph.D.

Thursday, May 31, 2018, 7:00 p.m.

The late Walter Landgraf’s research into the iron industry in the Northwest Corner of Connecticut led him to the Colebrook Forge (aka the Richard Smith Forge) in the Robertsville section of Colebrook. Walter was a retired teacher and former president of the Barkhamsted Historical Society. The forge was built in 1771 and was in operation during the Revolutionary War. The forge continued operating until 1810. Walt recognized the historical importance of this ironworks and put together a research group that included Colebrook Historian Robert Grigg, economist David Ingram, archaeologist Dr. Frederic Warner, English genealogy and historical researcher Ray Wheeler and university student David Veiling. Dr. Robert Gordon, Linne Landgraf and Anne Fenn also contributed to the Colebrook forge research.

An extensive search of local land records, histories and archives provided information on various aspects of the Colebrook Forge and the iron industry. A review of documents in the archival collections at Harvard’s Baker Library and the Archibald Library at Rutgers University was undertaken. This research guided the archaeology at the forge site that was directed by archaeologist Dr. Marc Banks between 2007 and 2011. The archaeology verified the locations a number of the buildings that were part of the forge complex. Hundreds of artifacts associated with these structures were recovered. Primary funding for the project was provided by the Farmington River Coordinating Committee with additional donations from the Barkhamsted and Colebrook Historical Societies, the Colebrook Land Conservancy and private citizens.

Free to members, students, and teachers; $5 for non-members. To reserve a seat, call 860-408-1336 or email simsburyfreelibrary@gmail.com.

About the Simsbury Free Library

The Simsbury Free Library (the Simsbury Genealogical and Historical Research Library) opened on the second floor of the Hopmeadow District School in 1874. In 1890, the Library’s collection was moved to its present location at 749 Hopmeadow Street in Simsbury. Today the Simsbury Free Library (SFL) seeks to promote interest in genealogy and history by providing access to research material and expertise, artifacts, and educational and cultural programs. It seeks to help patrons connect with the past and to learn from and be inspired by those who have gone before them. The SFL provides a relaxed setting in which people can pursue family research history at their own pace. For everyone from seasoned genealogy veterans to beginners, the SFL has the staff and resources necessary to help visitors develop the skills required to create family trees, search local histories, look up census records, explore vital records, etc.

The Simsbury Free Library – the Gracious Yellow Lady – is open Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and the second and fourth Saturdays of the month from 10:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. as well as by appointment. To RSVP or for more information, visit www.simsburyfreelibrary.org or call (860) 408-1336.