Naugatuck River Greenway and Park

I finally made time to visit the new park and greenway in the South End. The park is small, but delightful. The greenway is a work in progress, a 2.2 mile stretch of roadway now marked for bicycles which will eventually become part of a 44 mile greenway trail running from Derby to Litchfield. The new greenway in Waterbury runs from Bristol Street on Platts Mill Road, then up South Main Street to Eagle Street.

 

Camp or Platt Park

While some information about the park during its development referred to it as Camp Park, and the trail map at the park refers to it as Camp Park, it looks like the City has decided to name it Platt Park. The land for the park was donated by Miriam Camp Niederman. The Camp family married into the Platt family during the late 1800s. The Platt Brothers and Company, which has been in operation since 1797, is just down the road from the park.

The seven-acre park is designed for a variety of uses. There are picnic tables, bike racks, a mini outdoor theater, a short nature trail, and a spot to put your canoe in the river.

 

Winter is the Pits

One of Waterbury's great grassroots groups, Spirit of Waterbury, put together a winter festival at Hamilton Park this afternoon, the second in their series of Hidden Spaces, Secret Places events. The weather was more mud season than snow season, but everyone still had a good time. An estimated 1,000 people attended the event, which included a small bonfire, several pit fires, s'mores, chili, soups, hot chocolate, food trucks, and a mobile pub.

The Gathering at Library Park 2018

I'm sorry to say I did not get in as much of The Gathering this year as I wanted. By the end of watching the parade, my back was killing me. The delicious Lithuanian beer helped mask the pain, but by about 3 p.m., I was ready to collapse and headed home early.

At any rate, here are the photos from what I was able to enjoy. There's always so much going on, and so many awesome things to try to experience. The photos barely skim the surface of all that happened at The Gathering.

Welcome from Ghana

Hamilton Park

You might think that Hamilton Park was named for Alexander Hamilton, but it was actually named for a local silver manufacturer whose wife donated the land to the city.

David Boughton Hamilton (1824-1898) was the president and treasurer of Rogers & Bro., best known today for their silver-plated flatware, which is still popular with collectors. Hamilton and the Rogers brothers came to Waterbury in 1858 to start the Rogers Brothers manufacturing business. After Hamilton's death, the company merged with others to become International Silver Co.

Silver Street takes its name from the Rogers and Hamilton silver-plating factories which were located next to the land that became Hamilton Park.

Detail of 1899 map of Waterbury showing factories on Silver Street.
Courtesy of Library of Congress

Library Park History

Plans to renovate Library Park were announced this weekend (Rep-Am, 23 March 2018), so it seems fitting to spend some time delving into the park's history.

Library Park was created during the 1890s and expanded during the early 1900s. The expansion was part of a civic improvement project that eventually led to the redevelopment of all of Grand Street. Cass Gilbert, the architect for City Hall and four neighboring buildings constructed for the Chase family, worked with the Olmsted Brothers landscaping firm to beautify Library Park during the 1920s. The most recent improvement to Library Park was the installation of the Harrub Performing Arts Pavilion in 1985. Library Park's history begins, however, with a colonial-era burying ground.

Library Park in 1899, when the park was a rectangle extending straight back from Grand Street. There was a steep drop-off to a low retaining wall which isn't shown in this map. Hall, Livery, and Cedar Streets were removed during the early 1900s, making room for an enlargement of the park. (Detail of a map in the collection of the Library of Congress)

Waterbury's Trotting Parks

Trotting parks were a 19th century feature of New England life, offering the owners of standardbred horses a track for races. The racing circuit included Waterbury, Hartford, Putnam, and various other locations throughout New England.

The earliest documentation (found so far) of a trotting park in Waterbury is the 1879 Waterbury atlas, which shows the Jefferson Trotting Park on land owned by Matthew Lynch. The location is approximately where the Waterbury Screw Machine Products company is today on Thomaston Avenue. In 1879, there was no road, only the railroad. There was also a reservoir that has long since been drained.

G. M. Hopkins, Atlas of the City of Waterbury, Conn., 1879, Plate T
(Collection of Silas Bronson Library)

The Gathering in Library Park 2017

If the whole world got together for a party, it might look something like this. This was the fifth year of The Gathering, celebrating the many cultures that make Waterbury a wonderfully diverse city, with music, dance, food, and more.

It was hot in the sun, so the Italian ice vendors probably did very well.

Whipping Post on the Green

There was a demonstration on the Green last week. I didn't see it myself, but photos have been showing up on Facebook. The issue in question is the controversial presence of the potentially centuries-old whipping post on the newly renovated Green. While many people have forgotten its original purpose and saw it as an innocent piece of history, in use as a bulletin board for centuries, others clearly recognized it as more than just a public notice board.

Photo from Jesus Papers' Facebook page, posted July 15, 2017.

The demonstration was performance art, as you can see from the photo, one of several circulating on Facebook right now.

Welton Horse Fountain

The publication of Charles Monagan's novel about Carrie Welton has inspired renewed interest in the statue of a horse on the Green downtown. The novel is very good--I highly recommend reading it, especially if you have any interest at all in Waterbury's history. It blends fiction seamlessly with historical fact, making the past come alive. The Silas Bronson Library has copies of the book available to borrow. You can also buy a copy at John Bale Books on Grand Street, the Mattatuck Museum on the Green, or online at Amazon.com.

For whatever reason, I have always been very passionate about defending the horse that was the inspiration for the statue. If you're not familiar with the story, here's the gist of it: the horse was modeled after Knight, Carrie Welton's favorite horse; Knight, however, was responsible for the death of Carrie's father, Joseph Welton. The condensed version of the story, as it is often told, is "that's Carrie Welton's horse Knight, who killed her father." Very dramatic and memorable, but the full story is more nuanced.

Construction on the Green

The big public works project right now is the reconstruction of the Green downtown. The Green has been fenced off, and so far they've removed most of the sidewalks, lamp posts, benches, wood stanchions, and a few trees.

Harrub Memorial at Chase Park

During the early 1900s, Americans were fascinated with a romanticized view of the colonial period. Their enthusiasm for the colonial past started in 1876 with the centennial celebration of the start of the Revolutionary War. In 1920, when the country celebrated the 300th anniversary of the Pilgrim's arrival at Plymouth Rock, the Colonial Revival era was in full swing.

Waterbury inventor and engineer Charles Harrub was enamored with an idealized image of the Pilgrims. Following the death of his wife, Rhoby, in 1921, Harrub began planning a memorial to honor both his wife and the Pilgrims. He died before the monument could be completed, but he left his entire estate to the City of Waterbury, which oversaw the completion of Harrub's vision.

Harrub Pilgrim Memorial, Chase Park, April 2011

The Gathering 2015

The third great year of a great event. Thousands of people, speaking dozens of different languages, with different cultures and different life experiences, all gathering together for a festival celebrating each others music, dance, clothing, food, culture.

As before, The Gathering started with a parade down East Main Street, around the Green, up Bank Street to Grand Street, and then to Library Park. The park was set up with stages for music and dance performances, and tents for vendors selling food and other goods from all over the world.

New Zealand (Rod Dixon)

Laura Pearsall and Lakewood Park

Laura Elizabeth Russell (1844-1913) grew up in the Bucks Hill neighborhood. She was raised by her grandparents, Joseph and Elizabeth Fairclough, immigrants from Birmingham, England. Her grandfather worked as a blacksmith, while his sons helped support the family by farming.

At some point during the 1860s, Laura Russell met Zophar Pearsall, a prominent New York City butcher with a shop at Fulton Market and a home on Second Avenue. His customers included major hotels, steamship lines, and wealthy private homes. Zophar was nearly 30 years older than Laura and divorced. He was also very wealthy. Laura and Zophar married and had two children together.

Although Zophar continued his NYC business at Fulton Market, the family maintained a home in Waterbury, next door to Laura’s grandmother. Their house was large, with room for the family, three servants, and guests.

Zophar died in 1883 after a long illness. Laura and her son, also named Zophar, continued the Fulton Market business. All went well until 1890, when Laura was named as co-respondent in a divorce suit between Sarah and Edwin Camp. Sarah Camp claimed damages against Laura for the “alienation of Mr. Camp’s affections” and additionally claimed that Edwin gave Laura over $40,000 worth of property during their affair.

Springtime at Fulton Park

After a long, snowy winter, spring is finally here!

The Gathering in Library Park

The second batch of photos I took at The Gathering. Music, dancing, food, and more!

Save Shakespeare in Library Park

One of Waterbury's best events is in need of your support. Shakesperience Production's annual performance in Library Park started ten years ago and is in danger of being discontinued.

Performance at Library Park, 2012.

Why Live Here

The recent announcement of a small increase in the city's tax rate has been met with an outpouring of moaning and whining from people declaring that everyone should move out of the city, and politicking from local Republicans and Independents. I have not come across any viable suggestions of what can be cut from the budget to save money without harming needed city operations, just reactionary negativity about how this is a terrible thing. Yes, we have a municipal budget problem. But the problem will not be solved overnight, and short-sighted, knee-jerk reactions are not going to help.

There are far too many times when negativity has the loudspeaker in Waterbury. In the seventeen years that I've worked and lived in this city, I've encountered a seemingly endless parade of negativity. Too many people are eager to tell you what they hate about Waterbury, or how much they wish they lived somewhere else, and how nothing will ever change.

What amazes me most are the people who think that nationwide economic troubles exist only in Waterbury, or that Waterbury is somehow worse than any other city in Connecticut.

Enough moaning from me about other people moaning about Waterbury. Here is the list of reasons why I gladly choose to live in Waterbury.


Affordability
That's right, affordability is at the top of my list. Yes, the mill rate is high, but that's because the property values are low. My monthly mortgage payment is $600, and that includes the property taxes. There is no way that I could get a mortgage that cheap in the suburbs, or anywhere in Fairfield and Litchfield Counties. I can't even rent an apartment for that small an amount.

Fresh paint and new flooring; from when I bought my house in 2007.

Quality Housing
Waterbury is full of houses and apartment buildings that were built to last, and built to be beautiful. Of course, if you want to live in a post-1960, cheaply constructed, firetrap apartment or condo where the walls are so flimsy you can hear your neighbors whispering in their living room, we've got that too. But if you want a distinctive, unique home that makes you smile when you get home at the end of the day, a house that suits your personality and sense of individuality, Waterbury excels.

A large home in the Overlook neighborhood.

Food Diversity
We may not have the diversity of restaurants found in a larger city, but if you look past the preponderance of Italian restaurants, Chinese delivery, and pizzarias, you'll find Thai, Japanese, Lebanese, Turkish, Pakistani, Jamaican, Dominican, Puerto Rican, Mexican, BBQ, Soul, and Portuguese.

We also have a good number of small international groceries and delis, each of which specializes in foods of a specific country.

Pastries at the Albanian Festival.

Cultural Diversity
Because there are so many different immigrant groups in Waterbury, it is a very culturally diverse city, which is a great thing. The festivals held throughout the year by the various ethnic groups is one of Waterbury's best features.

Although mainstream sports tends to dominate in Waterbury, there are plenty of organizations, businesses, and activities to appeal to people looking for something other than baseball, football, and basketball.

Coasters for sale at the Greek Festival.

Entertainment
We don't just have cultural diversity: we also have Culture. Sure, if your idea of entertainment is the movies, we've got that. We've also got museums, a library, music, theaters (the non-movie kind), outdoor Shakespeare performances, parades, lectures, and discussions. We've even got two state college campuses that regularly hold cultural events that are open to the public.

Shakesperience performance at Library Park.

Parks
Waterbury has some great parks and is working on building a new linear park along the Naugatuck River that will connect to other towns. If it's a beautiful day and you want to get outside and enjoy a walk in the park, or take the kids to the playground, Waterbury has that.

Tulips at Hamilton Park.

Central Location
I love being able to do day trips to New York City and Boston. I like being able to pop up to Hartford or down to New Haven for quick visits. I like that I can go to the beach, or go for 26-mile car-free bike ride, or go hiking in the woods during the summer, and spend the winter skiing or snowboarding (not that I'm any good at either of those things, and haven't done them in years, but I like that I could). From Waterbury, it's a short drive to a wide variety of excursions.

The three major transit routes to and from Waterbury: I-84, Route 8, and the train line.

Safety
Waterbury is a safe city. Our police department does an amazing job not only of keeping major things like the homicide rate extremely low, but they also do an amazing job of building community through PAL and the Community Relations department.

PAL's Summer Youth Employment Program at work, helping a senior with his yard.

Convenience
Living in a city is all about convenience. I'm a ten minute drive, at most, from anything I need, be it a hospital or a grocery store.

Farmer's Market on the Green.

Opportunity
Waterbury's size is "just right" for anyone to have their voice heard or to establish a platform for success. In some ways, Waterbury is like an overgrown small town, where it's very easy to get to know a large number of people. There are countless volunteer opportunities to help you feel connected, keep you busy, or let you give back to the community. It's also a very supportive town: whatever you want to do, you will find someone to cheer you on and help make it happen. Despite the negativity I mentioned at the start of this post, Waterbury is full of people who are eager to see this city and its people succeed.

Community volunteers creating the "Cool Waters" mural at the Palace Theater.

Community
Last, but not least, when you live or work in Waterbury, it's very easy to feel connected to other people. Newcomers are quickly welcomed into a community of people who don't think twice about making them feel like they belong here. I've lived and worked in towns where newcomers are treated as pariahs, so that makes me appreciate Waterbury's openness even more.

A game of chess at the Old Skool Picnic at Lakewood Park.

Brew Fest!

Here are some shots from yesterday's Brew Fest at Library Park. The Brew Fest is a major annual fundraiser for Main Street Waterbury. It brings more than 2,000 people to downtown for the day; when they leave the Brew Fest at dinner time, they're all given maps to the restaurants downtown, and many of them, who come from out of town, make downtown hotel reservations so they can fully enjoy the Brew Fest.

First up, the classic car show outside the park on Grand Street:

 There weren't as many as usual. After the first heavy rain, they were gone.

Not part of the car show, this plate was in the ramparage.

The Brew Fest sold out in advance. The signs were a great idea--every year, after the last ticket is sold, people keep coming, begging to be let in.

 There were close to 300 brewers present. Fisch from Radio 104.1 had a tent set up as well.

The rain kept coming in short bursts. One minute here, three minutes there. A few times there was a torrential downpour, but most of the rainfall was pretty gentle.

Pretzel necklaces

Creative headgear at the Belgian tent

The Brass City Brewmaid made her annual appearance.

Presenters for the seminar on Beer in Revolutionary America.
They brought along beer brewed from George Washington's recipe.

Shock Top mobile tap. I tried their pumpkin wheat--very good, flavorful without any bitterness.

 

A couple thousand beer lovers in attendance.

Information booth for the Connecticut Beer Trail. More creative headgear.

It's a great event for beer drinkers--you can sample hundreds of
different beers, and talk to the brewers about them.

This is the one thing that I don't like about the Brew Fest. People stand around drinking under the tent, making it impossible for anyone to reach the beer. Granted, when I took this photo, it was pouring rain, but even when it isn't, they still crowd around under the tent.

People watching is half the fun of the Brew Fest
(at least, it is for me when I'm volunteering at the Brew Fest).

Happy people! I'd say the Brew Fest earned a thumb's up from the guy in the middle.

Newspaperman John Murray, publisher of the Waterbury Observer,
with camera gear in tow. He took some great shots of
Timmy Maia's performance at the Brew Fest.

Rep-Am reporter Andrew Larsen filming Main Street Waterbury Director Carl Rosa.
The final video can be viewed on the Rep-Am website.

T-Shirts! By the end of the day, there weren't many left. Main Street Waterbury also had souvenir glasses for sale--they sold out in less than three hours.

City Fest 2012

I strolled through Library Park on Saturday during the fifth annual City Fest. The place was packed with people. The majority of tents were Christian prayer tents. There were also tents with free clothing, free food, and a free bike raffle. Musicians and other entertainers performed on the Harrub pavilion.

The line of people for the free kid's bicycle raffle.

Free kid's bicycle raffle tent. Sad to think that so many kids don't have a bicycle and that so many families are dependent on a free give-away for a very basic and common childhood treasure.

The bicycles being raffled. Helmets were included.