July 24: Ancient Incan City Puts Hiram Bingham III on the Map

  Hiram Bingham III was, without a doubt, one of the most colorful people to grace the annals of Connecticut history. Born in 1875, over the course of his lifetime he became an Ivy League-educated scholar of Latin America, pilot, amateur archaeologist, Yale professor, United States senator, best-selling author, and the duly elected governor of…

June 21: “Poor Judgment” Costs a Governor His Job

  “I acknowledge that my poor judgment brought us here,” said John Rowland to a sea of reporters standing on the back lawn of the Connecticut Governor’s Mansion in Hartford. The date was June 21, 2004, and Rowland was announcing his resignation amid a federal corruption investigation and impeachment inquiry. His Lieutenant Governor, M. Jodi…

March 19: A Fallen Star Gets A Second Chance

  When 32-year-old Joseph Ganim became mayor of Bridgeport in 1991, he had the distinction of being the youngest mayor in the city’s history. At the time, there were few politicians who even wanted the job. Connecticut’s largest city had just filed for bankruptcy and was the only municipality in the state to have its…

March 18: A Former Governor’s Worst Day

  The day after St. Patrick’s Day was anything but a lucky one for John G. Rowland.The ex-Governor found himself on the wrong end of the law on March 18, 2005, and then again 10 years later on the exact same date in 2015. Once considered one of Connecticut’s best and brightest politicians, Rowland first…

March 17: An Almost Forgotten Civil War Hero, Statesman, and Patriot.

  A Civil War general who served in the First Battle of Bull Run, the Siege of Petersburg, and other notable campaigns, Connecticut’s Joseph R. Hawley was, during his lifetime, one of Connecticut’s most distinguished and celebrated citizens. A graduate of Hamilton College in New York, Hawley had a gift for both writing and public…

March 10: Connecticut’s First Congresswoman Did Just About Everything!

  Connecticut’s first congresswoman, Clare Boothe Luce, was one of the most professionally-accomplished women of her time.  Born Ann Clare Boothe on March 10, 1903, her parents instilled in her a love of music and the performing arts. After acting in a few minor theater roles as a young adult, she married New York City…

February 16: A Founding Father Becomes a First Mayor

  Though Roger Sherman was a reluctant public speaker, his even temper, level-headed pragmatism and moderate  disposition made him one of the most influential of all the Founding Fathers.  His guiding hand was felt both before, during and after the chaotic and turbulent era of the American Revolution, not just here in the Land of…

February 9: Connecticut’s 1st African-American Congressman

  Today in 1953, future Congressman Gary A. Franks was born in Waterbury, the youngest of six children in a family of limited means. His parents put a high value on education, and all six of their children went to college, and three obtained doctoral degrees. Gary was an All State high school basketball player…

March 17: A Now Forgotten Civil War Hero, Statesman, and Patriot

  A Civil War general who served in the First Battle of Bull Run, the Siege of Petersburg, and other notable campaigns, Connecticut’s Joseph R. Hawley was, during his lifetime, one of Connecticut’s most distinguished and celebrated citizens. A graduate of Hamilton College in New York, Hawley had a gift for both writing and public…