Fall 1999 A WONDERFUL TIME HAS BEEN HAD BY ALL by Karin Giannitti The Weston Historical Society has always been governed by a small board of trustees, many of whom we have introduced to you over the last year. These folks are all volunteers who have accepted a commitment to serve our Society for a term of three years. These trustees spend many long hours volunteering their time to make our Society a success. There are also many members who volunteer their time and effort to help us with fundraising, clean-up days, and various programs/exhibits. Once in a while one person stands out above the rest for their outstanding commitment and enthusiasm. We would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to one such volunteer - JoAnn Seestrom. JoAnn became involved with us when the Town of Weston was celebrating their bicentennial year. The Weston Young Women's Club and the Womens' Club of Weston volunteered to help the Historical Society with a bicentennial project. This project became the renovation of the downstairs of the Coley House which involved removing old wallpaper, putting up new paper, scraping and painting. JoAnn, as a member of the Womens' Club, lent her hands to this project, and in the process fell in love with the Coley House as many of us did. As a culmination of our efforts, we started our annual Christmas at the Coley House. JoAnn and members of the Womens' Club decorated the front hall and the front parlor of the house. The Weston Garden Club decorated the back parlor, and the Young Womens' Club decorated the dining room. Members of the Society baked and oversaw the very successful event. At that point, JoAnn was hooked for what was to be the next 11 years. JoAnn was born in Waco, Texas and attended a Community College in the area. She then went to work in Dallas and met her husband Frank, who was also working there. She tells a wonderful story of how they first met. JoAnn was being presented at a formal ball which took place on Valentine's Day. Unfortunately her date for the ball came down with the flu. He suggested that JoAnn call a friend of his. Frank answered the phone and explained that the friend was out of town. Not to be discouraged, JoAnn called everyone she knew and it seemed that everyone had the flu. She called Frank back and found out that he had a Tux - he said he would take her to the dance - they have been married 40 years. Fate? In 1980 Frank went to work for Pitney Bowes which brought them to this area of the country. They settled in Weston which they have really grown to love and raised their two children, Carol who now lives in St. Croix, and Jon who lives north of Seattle. JoAnn has been an extremely active member of the Womens' Club since she arrived. For many years, JoAnn and members of the Womens' Club continued to decorate the front porch, the entry hall, and the front parlor. JoAnn calls herself a coordinator who has called on many, many talented people to help her. Jean Drever has been her right hand woman with her skills and knowledge of crafts. The last two years have seen JoAnn in charge of decorating the entire house for our Christmas celebration. Each year, immediately after the open house, JoAnn started planning what she wanted to do for the next year. During the summer months she hunted for ornaments and decorations and enlisted friends and neighbors to do much of the handiwork necessary to ensure our beautiful decorations. Over the past 11 years we have had such themes as an "International Christmas," an "Old Fashioned Christmas," a "White Christmas," and a "Musical Christmas." No matter what the theme JoAnn and her group have risen to the occasion and provided us with beautiful decorations and thrilling collections of Santas, Teddy Bears, and toys, just to mention a few. This past Christmas, JoAnn decided that it was time for her to give up her involvement. She has spent such a great deal of time and money on this event as well as giving up Christmas at her own house so that we could enjoy all of her efforts. She felt that Christmas at the Coley House was "Her" Christmas. Frank has lovingly recorded all of our Christmases past with his camera and JoAnn has donated photo albums to us over the years. There is no way we can say enough thank yous to JoAnn for her undying love of our house and our efforts to bring it to the residents of Weston. We will always remember JoAnn making her famous vegetable soup the weekend of our quilt/antique car show, and her chili for the Scare Fair. We will still be amazed by JoAnn her friends arriving at the house loaded with ladders, hammers, decorations, etc. and several hours later leaving us a beautiful scene in every comer. We wish you and your family a very, very merry Christmas this year JoAnn. We will miss you. Back to contents.

Millie Best - Coats of Many Colors by Karin Giannitti Our last trustee to be interviewed is Millie Best. Millie is well known to many Westonites from the various aspects of her life. Millie was born and brought up in Garden City, Long Island, as was her husband, Ed. Millie worked for IBM as an assistant office manager after attending Washington School for Secretaries. Ed worked for Perkin Elmer for forty-three years which was what brought them to this area. In 1950 they were married and moved to East Norwalk and spent much of their early married life together sailing. With the advent of a family they moved to their current house in Weston which they have occupied for 45 years. Millie and Ed raised three children during which time Millie did much volunteer work for the schools and for Weston. Millie has been on the Republican Town Committee for 40 years, chairing the group during the early 1970's. She feels that it is an important job to pick the people who will sit on the various town boards as the town is run by these boards, and her involvement with the RTC allows her, in part, the opportunity to shape Weston's government. In her spare time Millie was able to attend Fairfield University and graduated with a degree in art history. Combined with her love of antiques and "everything old," she became an antiques appraiser. She is currently a member of the Appraisers' Association of America. For several years Millie ran the antiques show at the Norfield Church which she says was a labor of love, and she has been an active member of the Norfield congregation since moving to Weston. After her children were on their own, Millie received her real estate license 15 years ago. She is currently with Coldwell Banker. With all the houses that she sees for sale the ones that make her happiest are the old ones that have been restored. Millie also serves Weston as a Justice of the Peace. The accomplishment for which she is most proud is "Green Up Day." In 1972 Millie instituted the first of May to be a day for all town residents to go out on our streets and clean up the environment, picking up garbage, cans and other trash along the roadsides. This day has been extremely successful and Millie has gained state recognition for her efforts on the part of the environment. With all these goings on in her life, Millie and Ed spend a good deal of time at their 1850's home in Vermont where they still do a lot of skiing. Their son Bill actually attended the Stratton School for Ski Racers during his high school years and went on to be a member of the U.S. Ski Team for two years as a downhill racer. They have four darling grandchildren, two living in Fairfield and two living in Massachusetts, so Millie and Ed are able to spend a lot of time with them. Millie was asked to be on the WHS Board 4 years ago. She has helped us sort through some of the Society's belongings and has helped us decorate using her knowledge of antiques. She would love to see the archival building become a reality and to see the upstairs of the Coley House finished. Millie is a huge asset to our board and we thank her for her time and efforts on our behalf. Back to contents.

Gravestones in the Cellar For anyone who has roamed through the barn at the Coley Homestead, you may have ran across a tombstone leaning against the wall. Betty McCarthy Smith wrote an article about this gravestone and we would like to reproduce it here: "Did you ever wonder what you'd do if you found gravestones in your cellar? Well frankly, neither did we until it happened to us. We knew our Connecticut farmhouse was old because of its random width floorboards, hand forged nails in the roof and beams with the bark still on them, holding up the bedroom walls. But we didn't know how old it was. Then one day we pushed aside a cobweb-encrusted chest in the cellar and found a pair of beautifully decorated gravestones leaning against the foundation. "One had a urn with a weeping willow embellishing its top and it read: Harriet B. Burr wife of Moses Bur** DIED JanA 1848 AE 36 Yrs. Weep not for me my husband dear Nor thou my children to me so near But view my tomb as you pass by And think in dust you soon must lie. The other decorated with a twig, a bud and a blossom told an even more poignant story: CATHERINE J. daughter of MOSES & HARRIET B. BURR died July 8, 1847 AE 3 mos. How short the race our child has run Cut down in all her bloom The course but yesterday begun Now ended in the tomb. "Our discovery made me uneasy. I called the previous owner, a remote member of the family. She assured me that the graves had been moved to a family vault in Willowbrook Cemetery, Westport, in 1903 and described the exact location. 'Why were the headstones left in the cellar?’, I gulped. Her cheerful reply: 'You know those thrifty Yankees. They wouldn't waste good limestone. They used it to cool the vegetables and butter.' "This began a rewarding search into the past. Beer's Atlas of 1867, shows the Moses Burr house and cemetery in Weston, which was then a thriving industrial town boasting a Button Factory, Tannery and Sawmill; two Dry Goods and Grocery stores, Bradley's Edge and Tool Factory and many others. "Town Records revealed that Moses Burr was born in Greenfield in 1806, a descendant of Jehu Burr, born in England in 1600, who settled in Fairfield to produce a prolific family of ‘eminent lawyers, judges, and men of distinction.' His great grandson, Aaron, migrated to New Jersey, founded Princeton University and fathered a son who was to become the third Vice President of the United States, duel with Alexander Hamilton and become a cause celebre in a famous treason trial. "Our Moses Burr, according to one 'old timer' came to Weston as an adolescent 'to make his fortune' and apprenticed to a hatter in Danbury. He lived in a shack across the Saugatuck and 'shook the snow off his coverlet' when he commuted here weekends. "He married Harriet Banks and here we meet two conflicting theories about the origin of the house. The previous owner claims it belonged to the Banks Family. An 'old timer' claims to have heard it from his son that Moses Burr paid $500 to a Greenfield Contractor 'to build a four bedroom, four fireplace home with handmade window sashes, handblown glass panes with nine small panes over six larger ones.' "The late Hamilton Basso's handsewn leather account book presented to the Weston Library by his widow, shows that BURR, For mending boots and shoes, Nov. 21, 1835 .31; two pairs shoes soled .50, nov. 26: soling a pair of boots .43 and 1 pr. small shoes, Dec. 30, 1835, by his wife - 1 pr. morocco shoes 1.08 Mar. 20, 1836. "The 'small pair of shoes' and the 'children dear' referred to on Harriet's tombstone were Henry, who migrated to Knoxville, Tenn., and 'prospered in the lumber business' and Harriet who moved 'out west.' Neither 'returned to rest' in Weston. Catherine apparently succumbed to the diphtheria epidemic of 1847 which added thirty three infants' gravestones to the Weston cemeteries. "Moses did not 'lie in dust' so soon after Harriet at all. He married Elmira Smith of Greenfield within the year and lived forty three years longer, to 1891. They had a son, Lewis, born in this house on Christmas Day in 1859, who became a farmer and married Eliza Jane Bradley. Curiously enough he died on Christmas Day in 1932. "Lewis and Eliza had no children which explains why the graves were moved. According to Connecticut State law, anyone who buys land on which there is a Cemetery, must build around it and not disturb the graves. This often poses problems when breaking up property for sale. Eliza left the house to a niece who sold it to us. "We've enjoyed every minute of our fifteen years here and wouldn't have missed one moment of our fascinating sojourn into the past. It's reassuring to know things go backwards as well as forward in this jet-propelled, migratory, transitory world." **To the best of our knowledge, Moses Burr owned a house at the comer of Lyons Plain Rd. and Cartridge. Back to contents.

JIM COLEY - BUILDER Being a farmer in Weston did not always mean that all their time was spent on farming chores. Many of our settlers were also blacksmiths, cobblers, storekeepers, and carpenters. One of these men was our very own Jim Coley who not only had a 100 acre farm, but also did carpenter work "on the side." One of his projects was building a house for Mary and Milton Jungling of Weston. While going over some papers, Mary brought the following to George Guidera who forwarded them on to us. As George noted, "Most interesting to me is the very informal contract that people used in those days. A house construction contract today runs 30 to 35 typewritten pages and covers a myriad of subjects. As you can see from the enclosed, neither Jim, nor Mary's husband, Milton Jungling felt the need for any formality. I guess its because they knew each other so well and trusted each other. " It is also fun to note the prices of the materials, and the familiar old Weston name of Fancher Bros., artesian Well Drillers. We thank George and Mary for giving us this glimpse into home building not so very long ago. Back to contents.

JOHN LORD Last summer while working at the Weston Library, I received a call one afternoon at closing time from a gentlemen in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was looking for information on the Lord house located on Lords' Highway in Weston. I told him that I would forward him whatever information I could find at the library and that I would check the Historical Society to see if I could find anything further. A few days later I sent him all the information I had gathered and with some history that he had found he was on his way. He told me that his brother had just moved into the Lord House and he wanted to surprise him with something. Shortly after, I received in the mail a letter written on parchment, in brown ink, with a request to please mail it to his brother on his behalf. I thought it was such a clever letter that I had to share it with all of you. Wouldn't it have been such fun to receive this? View letter (large file). Back to contents.

Herb Garden My apologies yet again for my lack of herb garden history. We received a note via E-mail this summer from Bob Harper, Jr. who sent along another chapter in the long history of the Coley Herb Garden. Bob Harper, Sr. and his wife Lu were active members of the society when it began back in 1963 through their retirement 15 years ago. Bob, Jr. writes that he rebuilt and replanted the garden for the Historical Society about 25 years ago. His mom was a member of the committee and pestered her son to build the garden. He helped Mrs. Coley and her son Jimmy for many years and knows the place quite well. Bob, Jr. and Lu watered, weeded and maintained the garden for quite a while. They gave it up because the members pilfered it to the point of it being too costly to replace. Thus it stopped existing. We hope that his will clarify the history of the Coley Herb Garden and its many keepers and phases that it has gone through. We thank Bob for his letter and appreciate his efforts on the Society's behalf. Back to contents.

The following is an interesting letter written to us by Jim Hoe, one of Weston's foremost historians. Jim has put a lively and positive twist to a time that was considered doom and gloom for Weston. Thank you Jim. Weston Historical Society Weston, CT 06883 NO NO NO AND NO Thomas J. Farnham in his History of Weston (Weston: The Forging of a Connecticut Town, 1978) gives a very gloomy discouraging picture of Weston during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Struggling subsistence farms and shops and factories going out of business with mostly just a local market for both farm produce and factory products. Mr. Farnham used United States census records in Hartford for his statistics. These records appear to have been incomplete. There are omissions and errors. Example: in the Weston history pages 170 and 171 - "...by 1860 Bradley Hull was now running the forge that was started by Oliver Sanford." Bradley Hull ran the foundry, not the forge! The forge was run by Benjamin F. Buckley (also spelled Buckley) who is not mentioned in Farnham's book. B. F. Buckley was very busy and successful for over 40 years, and sold his products outside of Weston as well as obtaining his supplies. He sold thousands of pounds of "heaters" to hat manufacturers, including to Knox alone. (I am trying to find out what a "hatter's heater" is.) The History of Easton mentions Weston's busy forge and says Easton men went there to work. The Easton history also mentions the successful Weston Toy Factory at Aspetuck Corners. Toys were shipped to many foreign ports and all over the USA. Robert Gault of Gault Bros. in Westport told me 50 years ago that when he first started to work for his family's company he would make a weekly trip to the Toy Factory for their shipment which he took to the train station in Saugatuck. The 1880 History of Redding by Charles Burr Todd says that the Oliver Sanford Iron Works was prominent and profitable, and they shipped their products from Westport and Norwalk to various points, transporting to these ports via ox cart. It had to be a successful enterprise or he would not have rebuilt his works at Valley Forge, Weston, at age 64. Also, if he shipped out from Redding by oxcart and boat, he would continue to do so from Weston. There have been financial panics from time to time. There was a very bad one in 1836-7 which lasted 7 years. I experienced the last big one in the 1930's and observed long bread lines in New York, and block-long lines of men hoping to get a job. Mr. Farnham does not mention the depressions - I do so because he writes of subsistence farming... My childhood was spent on a farm about 25 miles from Weston. By all available records (such as those used by Farnham) it was a subsistence farm. However, it was much more than that, as there were 2000 chickens of which there is no record, and a large 5 acre potato field from time to time. For 13 years I never had any money in my pocket, nor did any of my friends. We didn't go to towns and stores and want to buy something. We didn't need to - we were too busy and happy on the farm and countryside to even think of stores. I loved the farm life as did all my family. We had fresh vegetables, apple trees, a grape arbor ... fresh milk from our cows ... a few pigs, three horses and a donkey, a root cellar and an ice house which we refilled every winter ... the chickens, with incubators and brooders ... also hay fields. We all loved the haying, of course. As I grew older, I loved being "grown-up" enough to work in the fields with the men, hoeing potatoes, etc. That farm was a wholesome, happy place. Neither there, nor at the large farm-ranch in the West on which I worked during the depression for $2.00 per day plus room and board, do I remember an unhappy face. Dejection! Gloom! on the farm - I don't believe it. During the depressions the dejection and gloom were found in the cities - but not on the farms, where there was plenty to eat, good company, and no need for money. Of course most young people wanted to roam when they became old enough, and did. Today the small commercial farm has been replaced by big farm corporations and air transport. How else could all the markets be kept stocked with fresh foods? In the 19th and early 20th century there were few markets outside of cities. Having a (by statistics) "subsistence" farm was the best way to provide good food for a family. Having a nearby shop or factory for income, and hiring a farm laborer, made it all a pleasure. I have seen pictures of migrant farm workers in Fairfield County in the early years of the 20th century with a note that no statistics on migrant workers are available. Dave Coley once told me that they used migrant workers on the Coley farm and used the old mill and shop buildings on the Saugatuck for bunkhouses. When Mr. Morehouse purchased this house and farm, he used our house for a bunk house for migrant workers. The old ox barn for this farm had stalls for 12 yoke of oxen. All these stalls showed signs of use, and the barn was still half full of good hay in 1948. (The barn was torn down about 1960 - I never owned it. When the Morehouse family sold this house, they kept the barn and all the farm land. Most of the land is now the Blue Spruce Circle development.) Far from Farnham's statistic-based image of dejection and gloom, these things paint a picture of a normal and healthy rural economy. Back to contents.

Happy Birthdays Two of Weston's oldest and dearly loved citizens celebrated milestone birthdays this past summer. Although belated, we wanted to take this opportunity to again wish them the best and to share some of the highlights with you. In June, we celebrated Helen Budd Mason's 95th birthday. Helen's friend Gloria Miller arranged what was to be a small celebration to take place at the Coley Homestead. Of course, there were so many people who wished to attend that Gloria soon had a large list of guests. She graciously accepted the challenge and sent out invitations and provided the guests with a lovely light lunch, beverages, and a cake. Friends from near and far joined Helen in the celebration. It was a lovely day from the weather, the food, and the good company. We can't wait to celebrate Helen's 100th. We did celebrate a 100th birthday this summer. On July 24th the Town of Weston celebrated Betty Hill's 100th birthday. Betty and her husband, Scott, were instrumental in starting the Historical Society and have been very generous contributors to us over the years. Betty was born July 22, 1899, and graduated from Smith College with a B.A. in 1921. She married Scott in 1926, received a M.A. in Psychology from Johns Hopkins University in 1950 and settled in Weston in 1959. She has two children, two grandchildren and four great grandchildren, and was this year's Grand Marshal for the Memorial Day Parade. Betty still walks a mile every day and keeps busy each and every day. Again we salute Betty for all her accomplishments and her wonderful spirit. Back to contents.