Chester Historical Society
The Chester Historical Society seeks to promote an interest in the history of Chester Connecticut as a prototypical New England small town that has survived and thrived by adapting to changing cultural, economic, and demographic environments throughout its four-century evolution as a settled community.
The Chester Historical Society created and hosts the Chester Museum at The Mill, a new museum whose award-winning permanent exhibit Streams of Change: Life and Industry along the Pattaconk tells a compelling history of its town. The Museum also presents changing exhibits with a particular theme. The 2011 exhibit Chester Voices from the Civil War coincided with the the 150th anniversary of the start of the conflict. Our 2012 exhibit was Beyond the Battlefield, a focus on the Chester home front during the Civil War. The 2013 exhibit, which will be called “Over the River and Through the Woods,” will focus on different modes of transportation in Chester over a 100-year period.
Throughout the year, the Society presents lectures, cracker barrels, and other events that also explore various aspects of Chester’s history.
The Society founded the Robbie Collomore Music Series which promotes an interest in classical and contemporary music through a series of four concerts held throughout the year.
Last year the Society joined five other local historical societies to produce a colorful “Get Lost in Heritage” brochure. Please visit our joint web site, http://www.ctriverheritage.org, to view the brochure and to find links to our partners’ web sites.
Side Doors and Dizzy River Bands Concert
Be a part of history as the Chester Historical Society hosts a concert by two local bands while they make their own historical live recording in the historic Chester Meeting House on Saturday evening, April 20.
The Side Doors and the Dizzy River bands will be sharing the stage. They describe themselves as Smooth Rock & Natural Roll – acoustic and electric instrumentation with a creative mix of eclectic, original and classic songs.
The Side Doors band is Todd Schrager, electric guitar and vocals; Matt Gyorog, acoustic guitar and vocals; Mike Conklin, bass and vocals; Leif Nilsson, banjo; Gary Parrington, percussion; and Colleen Seymour, guitar and vocals. The Dizzy River Band is Erin Smith, lead female vocalist; Frank Natter Jr. from Deep River (Face Arts Music), lead guitarist; Keith Newman, bass; and Mat Seymour, drummer.
The concert is from 8 to 10 p.m. Desserts, coffee, and wine will be served. Tickets at $20 each are available at Ceramica and Chester Gallery or through Leif Nilsson. All proceeds will benefit the Chester Historical Society’s programs and Chester Museum at The Mill.
Diane…
The answer is yes, but we’re not yet set up to let you handle self-research. The best bet currently is to contact our Curator, Shirley Feldmann Bush (shirleyfldmnnbsh7@gmail.com) with your interest.
I am interested in genealogical information in Chester. Will there be research information such as directories, town histories, etc available at the museum?