Simsbury History Museum Addition Approved By Town

SIMSBURY, CT — The town's historical society campus is getting a new addition and it will be one featuring a very old trade from the nation's past.

The Simsbury Zoning Commission recently voted 5-0 in favor of the Simsbury Historical Society to build a 360-square-foot blacksmith shop at the organization's 800 Hopmeadow St. museum site.

Robert Moody, Simsbury Historical Society president, was on hand July 17 to present the project to the zoning board, with fellow historical society member and project manager Dagne Griswold providing further information.

Griswold is organizing the project, which will create a working blacksmith shop in the auxiliary building as well as a special exhibit on indigenous people in the area.

"We are adding a small auxiliary building to our campus, which is close to 3 acres," she said before the zoning board. "It's basically a museum, but its going to have half of it a blacksmith shop, the other half an indigenous American exhibit."

Griswold said it will be close to the campus' parking area and would be handicap accessible.

The society has hired Country Carpenters of Hebron to build the post-and-beam structure.

The project has already been endorsed by teh town's design review board and the zoning board had little trouble approving the application with some conditions.

The Simsbury Historical Society operates a multi-building museum campus on Hopmeadow Street, where it hosts special events.

Included on the museum site is the Ellsworth Visitor Center and Museum Store.

For the minutes of the July 17 Simsbury Zoning Commission meeting, click on this link.

For more information on the Simsbury Historical Society, click on this link.