Aspinock Memories
Putnam’s rich history - Cady Copp and Boxcar museum
By Terri Pearsall,
AHS Museum Curator
July 4th marked the 250th anniversary of the birth of the United States of America. The country has many celebrations scheduled throughout the year and especially this July 4th. 250 years ago, Putnam had not been incorporated as a town.
In 1776, the area that is now Putnam was still Killingly, Pomfret, and Woodstock. Putnam was incorporated in 1855. The town fathers had wanted the area to be named Aspinock, which is the Indian name for the area of water from the great falls (Cargill Falls) to Long Island Sound. But the legislature in Hartford rejected the petition two times using the name Aspinock. So, they petitioned again using the name “Putnam” after General Israel Putnam, the famous Revolutionary War General of the Bunker Hill Battle. Although he was from Brooklyn, the legislature accepted the petition and Putnam was incorporated.
Putnam has a rich history. The Quinebaug River was a source of power for several mills which provided jobs for local citizens (mostly women and children) leading to the immigration of Irish, Scottish, Italian, Polish, and Franco-American families. The mills provided everything for their workers: houses, stores, social clubs, etc. At one point, 60 trains a day went through Putnam. Travelers going to Boston from New York City went through Putnam to get to their destination. Putnam was a hub of activity with many hotels, restaurants and a couple of theatres downtown.
On Sept. 26, 1972, The Aspinock Historical Society was founded to preserve the history of Putnam. Since then, the Society has conducted tours of the town, had strawberry socials and many programs on the history of the town. The Aspinock Historical Society now has three museums. The largest museum is in the Municipal Complex, 2nd floor featuring displays of Putnam’s history, a research lab and an archives storage space. It is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tues. – Thurs. The Cady Copp Cottage on Rt. 21 is open by appointment only and the Gertrude Warner Boxcar Children Museum on South Main Street is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays from May– mid October.
The Cady Copp Cottage
In 1992, Mrs. Barbara Peckham donated the Cady Copp Cottage (one of the oldest houses in Northeast CT) in memory of her husband, Fenner H. Peckham, Jr., to the Aspinock Historical Society. The Cady Copp Cottage constructed c.1745 sat in a busy area on Rt.21 (Liberty Highway) in Putnam (then Killingly). Its front door was only a few feet from a road which led to the Killingly common and militia training ground.
The Common is a field now abutting Rt. 21; the old road is a path through woods and forms part of a private drive. The house was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2001 based on its architectural and historical significance. Its modest size, square design, and corner fireplaces have few comparatives, and it retains its original rural setting of old stone walls marking field and livestock pens. Perhaps its most remarkable attribute is its relative lack of modernization. The house was last occupied in the 1920s. It has never been fitted with modern utilities, and the grounds have not been altered.
This house was a common form in the 18th century, but not many have survived. It is essentially square in plan (32 feet x 32 feet). The ground floor is divided into four main rooms, each with a corner fireplace set into the large chimney stack. The front entrance is enclosed within a portico which extrudes from the south side of the house. A small pantry extends off the northeast corner of the house, opening into the kitchen, which has a bake oven in its fireplace. There is a hand pump in the pantry connected by a pipe to the 18th century well just outside the kitchen door.
The Cady-Copp Homestead was designated a State Archaeological Preserve in 2005. The history of the Cady-Copp house begins on April 17, 1745, when Joseph Cady, Esq. deeded to Perley Howe, clerk and newly called minister of the local Congregational society in Killingly. Joseph Cady was a prosperous and influential person. He was a Justice of Peace, the captain of the local militia company, and one of the founders of a Library Association established in 1739. The house was sold several times and in 1776 was sold to David Copp. In 1872 it was sold out of the Copp family and bought and sold by other families until the Aspinock Historical Society acquired the property.
From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 11, 2026, Aspinock Historical Society and the Recreation Department will be conducting tours of the cottage in conjunction with the 250th anniversary of America. If you would like to take a tour of the cottage, you must register with the Recreation Department at
Renovations have included the sill, the roof, the parlor, the path into the site and more. Work in the future will include more entrance road work and more.
The Gertrude Warner Boxcar Children Museum
On July 3, 2004, The Gertrude Warner Boxcar Children Museum had its grand opening. Gertrude Chandler Warner lived her whole life in Putnam, Connecticut. Even as a little girl, she always loved reading and writing. Her favorite book was Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, and she authored her own first book at age nine.
In 1918 so many Putnam citizens had left to fight in WWI that there was a teacher shortage and Gertrude was asked to teach first grade. She was a teacher for 32 years teaching generations to read and to appreciate nature and music. Most importantly, she taught each child to respect each other.
She grew up at 42 South Main St., right across the street from the bustling train station. The comings and goings of the many mail and passenger trains fascinated her. She has always thought it would be fun to keep house in a caboose. In 1942 she wrote the versions of The Boxcar Children that we all know about Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny and their adventures in an abandoned boxcar.
Gertrude made The Boxcar Children exciting, and she used words and sentences that are easy to understand. She wanted all children to get hooked on reading. She wrote 19 Boxcar mysteries in all. Now other authors continue her mystery adventure series for today’s children.
The museum contains photos and information about Ms. Warner. Original Signed books, pupils’ silhouettes and personal letters are featured in the museum. Her father’s desk, at which Gertrude often wrote, is also a featured item in the museum. The Boxcar is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays from May to mid-October.
The museum began with a 1936 New Haven boxcar craned into place and upgrades, renovations and repairs , many funded by the Putnam Area Foundation, ensued including temperature control, a ramp, and a pavilion dedicated to boxcar organizer and society president Fred Hedenberg. A 5-foot wide concrete walkway is on the agenda and should be finished within a month.
All information in this article was taken from the archives at the Aspinock Historical Society Museum.
Aspinock Memories graces the pages of the Putnam Town Crier to keep Putnam’s history alive.
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