Today in 1802, Gideon Granger of Suffield took office as the nation’s fourth postmaster general, ushering in a new era for the U.S. postal service — for better and for worse. A Yale graduate, Granger practiced law in his hometown of Suffield and served in the Connecticut General Assembly beginning in 1792. Following an…
Tag: political history
January 9: Connecticut Joins the United States
Today in 1788, the delegates at the Connecticut state convention ratified the United States Constitution by a vote of 128 to 40, making Connecticut the fifth state to join the Union. While certain states, most notably New York and Virginia, remained skeptical of the new Constitution and required lots of convincing in order to…
January 8: Washington Gives the First State of the Union Address, Dressed in Connecticut’s Finest
As the first President of the newly-formed United States of America, George Washington was acutely aware that his his every decision would be scrutinized, and his every move would set a precedent for how the nation’s future chief executives should act. As a firm believer in the republican principles laid out in the new…
January 7: Connecticut’s One-Day-Only Governor
CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW TO HEAR AN AI WRITTEN AND AI NARRATED VERSION OF TODAY’S STORY. This is an experiment in seeing how artificial intelligence can be applied to public history. The AI participants (Chat GPT AND Eleven labs) were prompted by curator Walt Woodward to write and narrate new stories based on…
January 6: A Wartime Departure From an Ancient Tradition
CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW TO HEAR AN AI WRITTEN AND AI NARRATED VERSION OF TODAY’S STORY. This lis an experiment in seeing how artificial intelligence can be applied to public history. The AI participants (Chat GPT AND Eleven labs) were prompted by curator Walt Woodward to write and narrate new stories based on…
December 26: The Governor Who Refused to Leave Office
One of Connecticut’s most accomplished citizens — and governors — also had one of the state’s most unusual nicknames. Morgan G. Bulkeley — Civil War veteran, financier, insurance executive, first president of baseball’s National League, and strong-arm politician — earned himself the nickname “the Crowbar Governor,” while serving in that office in 1891.” Bulkeley…
December 7: A Stand Out Governor, & the Only Civil War Veteran in the Baseball Hall of Fame
Morgan Gardner Bulkeley, long-time Connecticut politician and successful businessman, was undoubtedly one of the most accomplished men to ever hold the office of state governor. However, while many Connecticans are familiar with Bulkeley’s many namesakes in the Hartford area (including a school, a street, and the long, stone-arch bridge that carries Interstate 84 over…
November 27: Connecticut Adds “or sex” to the State Constitution
Today in 1974, frustrated at the slow pace with which other states were acting to amend the federal constitution, Connecticut amended its own state constitution, inserting the words “or sex” into a key provision of that document. Two years earlier, Connecticut had been one of over 30 states that voted to ratify the Equal…
November 24: Connecticut’s Longest-Serving Governor Learned His Political Skills Behind a Bar.
In many respects, Governor William A. O’Neill lived the life of a quintessential 20th century Connectican. Born in Hartford in 1930, he attended public schools in East Hampton, took classes at the Teacher’s College of Connecticut (now Central Connecticut State University), and subsequently held jobs in two of Connecticut’s major industries: first at Pratt…
November 6: The Greatest Night of John F. Kennedy’s Presidential Campaign
“On Tuesday night, the first State of the Union to vote and have its results is the State of Connecticut. (Applause) It will be about 3 or 4:30 in California when the results of Connecticut are announced. This State is important. What you do is important. You can have an effect here and across…
November 5: Ella Grasso, America’s First Female Governor Elected In Her Own Right
Born to Italian immigrants in 1919, Ella Rosa Giovanna Oliva Tambussi grew up in a blue-collar neighborhood of first- and second-generation Americans in Windsor Locks, Connecticut. Her parents, determined to invest in a better future for their daughter, saved up enough money to send Ella to the prestigious Chaffee School in Windsor. Afterward, she…
November 4: Connecticut Founder, Alchemist, and Witch Protector John Winthrop Jr. Arrives in America
Today in 1631, John Winthrop, Jr., one of the most important figures in Connecticut history, first set foot in the New World, having arrived in Boston where his father, John Winthrop Sr., was governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. A Renaissance man of many talents, the younger Winthrop was well-versed in alchemy, natural magic,…