November 19: Bold as Brass, The Silver City Goes International

  Today in 1898, the International Silver Company, one of Connecticut’s most famous and globally recognized brands, was formally incorporated in Meriden. The central Connecticut city had already established a national reputation as a leading producer of silver and silver-plated goods by the late 19th century, earning it the nickname “the Silver City.” By 1898,…

August 27: “Substance X” Leads To the Nation’s First Chemotherapy Treatment

  Today in 1942, following top-secret research  on the effects of the war-poison mustard gas, physicians at Yale University made medical history as they  administered the first use of intravenous chemotherapy as a cancer treatment in the United States. This medical milestone was the culmination of  experiments aimed at defending against the horrors of mustard…

November 19: Bold as Brass, The Silver City Goes International

  Today in 1898, in the middle of a sustained series of national economic crises, the International Silver Company, one of Connecticut’s most famous and globally recognized brands, was formally incorporated in Meriden. The central Connecticut city had already established a national reputation as a leading producer of silver and silver-plated goods by the late…

November 15: The Unlikely Stardom of Rosa Ponselle

  Born to Italian immigrants living in Meriden, Connecticut in 1897, Rosa Ponselle (born Rosa Ponzillo) displayed a natural talent for both singing and instrumental music at an early age. To express that talent, she began her musical career as a teenager, singing ballads in local movie theaters to keep audiences entertained while the projectionist…

July 14: A Measurable Improvement in Tape Measures

  On July 14, 1868, Alvin Fellows of New Haven, Connecticut received a patent for his unique spring-loaded, locking tape measure design. While Fellows certainly wasn’t the first to conceive of using demarcated strips of metal tape as a measuring tool, his unique design featured significant improvements over previous tape measures and was the first…