first pg 5 12-14-17
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1st Fridays
to celebrate
mill heritage
PUTNAM — Save the dates and bring your family memories to the forefront for the 8th season of First Fridays. In 2018 the Putnam Business Association will focus on the mosaic of diverse local history and culture with a celebration of northeastern Connecticut’s mill towns.
Driving through the scenic towns of the region, it is commonplace to pass brick and stone mill buildings set alongside powerful rivers. Some mills have been revitalized, but many have been lost to time. These structures represent more than just a bygone era of industrialism; they symbolize much of our local cultural heritage.
At the turn of the 19th century, Samuel Slater introduced the concept of inviting entire families to move to factory towns. Next to the factories, houses were built for the new workers. Company stores and company-financed civic buildings filled the streets of the towns.
Many current residents of our community are a product of our small mill towns, with roots and deep memories extending to Canada, Poland, Greece, Finland, and other parts of the globe.
Visit the “Cultural Celebration Station” during First Fridays each month for a glimpse of the many cultural mosaic pieces of the region.
Save these First Fridays dates to discover the mosaic of our Quiet Corner Heritage, with art, music, food, dance, phrases, traditions, family memories and more!
May 4 celebrates Polish-Americans, who came to New England in family groups to work in the factories, primarily textile mills, and settled in neighborhoods with large Slavic populations. Discover cultural topics like “?migus-Dyngus” (Wet Monday), share your Pierogi and Gobalki recipes and more!
June 1 celebrates African-Americans spanning the earliest years of the state’s colonization around 1630 continuing strongly to this day. Learn how Connecticut’s official “State Heroine” impacted history, and find out where the Connecticut Freedom Trail location is in Putnam.
July 6 celebrates French Canadian-Americans, and the many “Little Canadas” formed in our region. Surely you’ve mange’ (eaten) Toutiere (meat pie), Poutine (fries w/cheese curds & brown gravy), Pea Soup, Pouding Chomeur (Poor Man’s Pudding.)
Aug. 3 celebrates Greek-Americans as many Greeks arrived to work in textile mills. Popular Foods you may have ????? (eaten) are Spanakopita, Baklava, Moussaka (casserole), and Souvlaki. Yum!
Sept. 7 celebrates Native-Americans, as there were originally many small American Indian tribes in the Connecticut area, including the Mohegan, Pequot, Niantic, Nipmuc, Mattabesic, Schaghticoke, Paugussett, and others. The name “Connecticut” is an Algonquian Indian word Quinnehtukqut meaning “beside the long tidal river” or “long river” and refers to the Connecticut River.
Oct. 5 celebrates Scandinavian-Americans, a broad group made up by the people of Finland, Sweden & Norway. Finnish immigrants began to settle in Connecticut in the 1920s and Grosvenordale boasted a rich Swedish population. If you’ve attend Scandinavian holiday gatherings you may have maistui (tasted) Gravlax (salmon), Pickled Herring, Isterband (Swedish sausage), and Semla (cardamom bun w/whipped cream.
Oct. 5 also welcomes back First Fridays’ own unique culture of Zombies during the wildly popular Zombie Fashion show. Zombie costume possibilities are endless with our cultural mosaic theme! Imagine Heidi the Scandinavian Zombie, or a Paul Bunyan Zombie? Find your inner zombie artist, create and come dressed in costumes inspired by your own family history and make it a frightfully fun evening!
For more information go to: http://www.discoverputnam.com.