Grating the Nutmeg
Connecticut is a small state with big stories. GTN episodes include top-flight historians, compelling first-person stories and new voices in Connecticut history. Executive Producers Mary Donohue and Natalie Belanger look at the people and places that have made a difference in CT history. New episodes every two weeks. A production of Connecticut Explored magazine.
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239. Sam Colt Mines the West (10th Anniversary Encore Release)
10/15/2026
239. Sam Colt Mines the West (10th Anniversary Encore Release)
In celebration of our 10th anniversary, we are bringing you a remastered edition of an episode recorded in 2017 at the University of Hartford as part of the Presidents’ College and ’s “Connecticans in the American West” lecture series. In this episode, Dr. Leah Glaser tells the story of Sam Colt’s investment in the Sonora Exploring and Mining Company in the 1850s, a company that was incorporated in Cincinnati, Ohio to exploit silver mines in the new Arizona Territory. As we found out in Grating the Nutmeg episode #129 Sam Colt and the Six-Shooter that Changed American, Colt had had a string of business flops before becoming perhaps the richest man in Connecticut. Colt never set foot in Arizona but that didn’t mean he didn’t pour energy, money, and firearms into the venture. How did the Apache, the Civil War, and a myriad other challenges intervene? DID Colt leave an indelible impression on the American West or fade away in failure? Dr. Glaser received her Ph.D in American History from Arizona State University. She is a professor of history at Central Connecticut State University. Further Reading: REVOLUTION IN INDUSTRY: AN AMERICAN MANUFACTURING EMPIRE ON HARTFORD’S SOUTH MEADOW, 1855-1945 Coltsville National Historical Park Leah S. Glaser, Katherine Hermes, Matthew Warshauer, Lauryn West September 30, 2026 ------------------------------ Don’t forget to subscribe to magazine today. And please set up your monthly donation to Grating the Nutmeg at so we can continue bring you newresearch in Connecticut history, compelling first-person stories and fresh voices. This remastered episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow Grating the Nutmeg on Facebook and Instagram. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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238. Living on the Edge: New England, New Netherland, and New Sweden
10/01/2026
238. Living on the Edge: New England, New Netherland, and New Sweden
In the 1600s, Connecticut settlers had to contend with a multitude of threats to their survival, both as individuals and as a colony. Those threats weren't just internal — poor harvests, disease, religious strife — but external, too. The colonists were caught up in a complicated web of international diplomacy, vulnerable to the ambitions of imperial powers like the Spanish, the Dutch, the English, and....the Swedes? In this episode, Natalie Belanger chats with Elizabeth Hines, Assistant Professor at the University of South Florida. Dr. Hines is working on a book about Anglo-Dutch relations in the 17th century. In 2025, she did research at the to better understand the context of the Treaty of Hartford of 1650, in which Dutch and English colonists negotiated territorial boundaries between their North American colonies. Hines argues that the treaty became a tool for the Dutch in their goal of swallowing up the Swedish colony on the Delaware River. Though successful in the short term, the Dutch would soon lose all their land in North America to the English. Her work shows that we need to study the Dutch, English, and Swedish empires together to understand early American history. Thanks to Natalie Belanger of the for bringing us this unusual story! -------------------------------------------- Don’t forget to subscribe to magazine today - in your mailbox or your inbox! And please set up your monthly donation to Grating the Nutmeg at so we can continue bring you the stories you want to hear! This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Natalie Belanger and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow Grating the Nutmeg on Facebook and Instagram. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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237. Mary Barlow: Hartford’s Fallen “Six-Triple-Eight” Soldier
09/15/2026
237. Mary Barlow: Hartford’s Fallen “Six-Triple-Eight” Soldier
This episode tells the story of one of the women depicted in The Six Triple Eight, a 2024 WWII war drama film by Tyler Perry that tells the true story of the 6888 Central Postal Directory Battalion. Mary Jewel Barlow was one of only three members of the 6888th Postal Directory Battalion who died in service during World War II and one of only four women buried in the Normandy American Cemetery in France. The 6888 was an all-Black, all-female Women’s Army Corps battalion. A real young woman from Hartford’s North End, Barlow’s life and sacrifice deserve recognition. The guest is . A renowned member of Hartford’s jazz community, Jenkins is also a genealogist and award-winning author originally from Hartford. His research has been featured in The Washington Post, on the National Parks Service website, and the Journal of the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society. Orice has meticulously researched Mary Barlow and brings that story to us. He is a returning Grating the Nutmeg guest - he was featured with Jill Marie Synder on episode #127 - Telling Your Family’s Story. Listen here: You can find out more about his work and contact information on his website at He is available for book talks, programs, and genealogical research. For more about his book, The Early County Massacre: Goolsby vs. The State of Georgia, go to: Mary Barlow grew up in Hartford’s North End. Be sure to go to the ’s website to plan your visit to see Drawn Here: Stories from Hartford’s North End”. In addition to the fabulous graphic novel artwork, the exhibit also has interesting items too. -------------------------------- Don’t forget to subscribe to magazine today - our Fall issue is out-plan your fall color-season daytrips. And please set up your monthly donation to Grating the Nutmeg at ctexplored.org so we can continue bring you new research in Connecticut history, compelling first-person stories, and fresh voices. This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow Grating the Nutmeg on Facebook and Instagram. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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236. Greater Hartford’s West Indian Diaspora (10th Anniversary Encore Release)
09/01/2026
236. Greater Hartford’s West Indian Diaspora (10th Anniversary Encore Release)
In celebration of our tenth anniversary, we are bringing you a remastered edition of an episode recorded in 2018 by Dr. Walter Woodward, Connecticut State Historian Emeritus with Dr. Fiona Vernal and former Hartford History Center Program Manager Jasmin Agusto. Dr. Vernal serves on the Connecticut Explored magazine Editorial Board. She holds a BA in history from Princeton University and a PhD. from Yale University. She is an associate professor of history and Africana studies and director of EPOCH: Engaged Public, Oral, and Community Histories at the University of Connecticut. Since this episode was recorded in 2018, Vernal has recorded hundreds of oral histories with members of Greater Hartford’s West Indian community. The 2018 exhibit referenced in the episode has long since come down but a new exhibit entitled “Drawn Here: Stories from Hartford’s North End” is open now, September 2026 to January 17, 2027, at the in Hartford. The exhibit exploresthe migration history and culture of Hartford’s North End through a series of original graphic novels developed by local students and professional artists. The experiences of the Irish, Italians, Eastern Europeans, Black Southerners, West Indians, Puerto Ricans, and others who have made the neighborhood their home, whether briefly or for generations, add nuance and depth to our understanding this urban neighborhood. In today’s Grating the Nutmeg episode, we’re going to take a deep dive with Drs. Woodward and Vernal into the 70+ year history of West Indians who made Hartford home. Be sure to go to the ’s website to plan your visit to see Drawn Here: Stories from Hartford’s North End”. In addition to the fabulous graphic novel artwork, the exhibit also has interesting items too. --------------------------- Don’t forget to subscribe to Connecticut Explored magazine today-our Fall issue is about to go in the mail-in your mailbox or your inbox. And please set up your monthly donation to Grating the Nutmeg at ctexplored.org so we can continue bring you new research in Connecticut history, compelling first-person stories and fresh voices. This remastered episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow Grating the Nutmeg on Facebook and Instagram. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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235. Awakenings and Revolutions: The Harts, Saybrook, and the New Nation
08/14/2026
235. Awakenings and Revolutions: The Harts, Saybrook, and the New Nation
From the high seas to the town square, we’re bringing you the story of a New England family navigating revolution, economic expansion, and nation building. is a new look at the residents of the Old Saybrook Historical Society’s Gen. William Hart House and the Hart family of Old Saybrook, Connecticut. Moving between the Connecticut River estuary, Hartford, New London, Boston, New York, and as far as Ohio and the West Indies, the story reveals the Harts’ surprising connections to major moments of Connecticut’s and our nation’s early history. Author and historian Elizabeth Normen shares details about the Great Awakening; slavery in the north; the American Revolution and privateering; the West Indies trade, and the birth of the two-party political system in America. From pious ministers to financial fraudsters, the Hart family spent 250 years in Old Saybrook. Normen is the founder and first publisher of Connecticut Explored, the magazine of Connecticut history and of the Grating the Nutmeg podcast. Visit the beautiful gardens of the General Hart House at 350 Main Street in Old Saybrook, Connecticut. Order the book on the Old Saybrook Historical Society’s website here: -------------------------------------- Don’t forget to subscribe to Connecticut Explored magazine today-our summer issue is a double-issue celebrating our nation’s 250th birthday! And set up your monthly donation to Grating the Nutmeg at This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow Grating the Nutmeg on Facebook and Instagram. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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234. Saving Connecticut’s Historic Barns
07/15/2026
234. Saving Connecticut’s Historic Barns
In 2006, , then the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation, realized that historic barns across the state were being demolished or allowed to fall down. What could be done to save them? Where were they? How many are there? How can we get people across the state to be interested in barns? All of this was unknown. My guest, Todd Levine, was hired to help answer those critical questions. Todd is currently the Environmental Review officer and Connecticut Freedom Trail Coordinator at the . He is an architectural historian and received his graduate degree from the Savannah College of Art and Design. What did my guest discover about Connecticut’s barns? Find more in this episode and by going to Preservation Connecticut’s barns website at: Hilltop Farm was built by Indian Motorcycle co-founder, George Hendee, starting in 1913, as a gentleman's retirement farm. Construction of Hendee’s signature dairy barn was completed in 1914. The Friends of the Farm at Hilltop (FOFAH), a nonprofit, own 11 acres where the "Big White Barn", outbuildings and house sit. The link to their website is here: Our thanks to for sponsoring this episode. ------------------------------------ Don’t forget to subscribe to magazine today - our summer issue is a double-issue celebrating our nation’s 250th birthday! And set up your monthly donation to Grating the Nutmeg at ctexplored.org This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow Grating the Nutmeg on Facebook and Instagram. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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233. Rough Justice for Connecticut State Hero Nathan Hale (10th Anniversary Encore Release)
07/03/2026
233. Rough Justice for Connecticut State Hero Nathan Hale (10th Anniversary Encore Release)
Happy 250th birthday to our nation and 10th anniversary to Grating the Nutmeg! In celebration of our 10th anniversary, we are bringing you a remastered edition of an episode recorded in 2020 with , Connecticut State Historian Emeritus. Dr. Woodward takes a new look at the actions surrounding the Revolutionary War execution of State Hero Nathan Hale, and finds there are still some burning questions left to be answered about this hasty and irregular event. It’s a story from Walt's book from Globe Pequot Press. As you’ll soon hear, when looking for answers about the Rough Justice handed out to Nathan Hale by the British in New York in 1776, where there’s smoke, there’s fire... ------------------------ Don’t forget to subscribe to magazine today-our summer issue is a double-issue celebrating our nation’s 250th birthday! And to celebrate Grating the Nutmeg’s 10th anniversary, set up your $10 a month donation to Grating the Nutmeg at ctexplored.org This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was originally produced by Walt Woodward in 2020. Don’t forget to follow Grating the Nutmeg on Facebook and Instagram. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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232. Guides for Black Travelers: New London’s Green Book Sites
06/15/2026
232. Guides for Black Travelers: New London’s Green Book Sites
What’s the first thing you do when you want to take a trip? Look through Instagram to find things to do? Or Yelp for restaurants that serve local cuisine? Today travelers can follow social media influencers and websites that promise to give you an insider’s look at places to stay or the best discounted hotel rates. But for Black travelers in the Jim Crow era through the 1960s, it wasn’t easy to find places to eat or stay overnight. In this episode, we are going to talk about two national guides for Black travelers, both published beginning in the 1930s, and places that were included from New London, Connecticut. Our guests, Nicole Thomas and Tom Schuch, are part of the team that produced the New London Black Heritage Trail, designated as one of 20 Connecticut History Gamechangers by Connecticut Explored magazine in 2022. Nicole Thomas was born and raised in New London. She is the Assistant Site Administrator at the for and is instrumental in the interpretation of the life of Adm Jackson who was enslaved at the Hempstead Houses. You can hear that story on Grating the Nutmeg episode #175 Sleeping with the Ancestors with author Joe McGill. Tom Schuch is a New London native and a graduate of Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. He has a special interest in forgotten local history. This interest led to the discovery of several of the New London Green Book sites, as well as other sites that are now part of the New London Black Heritage Trail. Tom was featured on Grating the Nutmeg episode #149 New London and the Middle Passage. Be sure to go to the Connecticut Landmarks website to plan your visit to the Hempstead Houses. Learn about the mid-20th century Green Book guides that Black Americans used to find welcoming lodging and other services whether traveling for work or pleasure on Preservation Connecticut’s website Architecture of the Green book in Connecticut: And find Tom Schuch’s blog All Schuch Up on Substack.com To see the Green books, visit To listen to Nicole and Tom’s other Grating the Nutmeg episodes. Visit: Grating the Nutmeg is partnering with Preservation Connecticut to bring you summer and fall episodes on saving historic barns, New London sites found in the historic Green Book guide for black travelers, Mid-Century Modern architecture, and sites that reveal the state’s LGBTQ+ history. Connecticut’s historic places matter! Visit Preservation Connecticut’s website to learnmore and become a member at ----------------------- This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow Grating the Nutmeg on Facebook and Instagram. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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231. John Hooker: Hartford’s Abolitionist Lawyer
06/01/2026
231. John Hooker: Hartford’s Abolitionist Lawyer
In this episode, you’ll be introduced to John Hooker, a Hartford lawyer, judge, and abolitionist as well as a reformer for women’s rights. Hooker was the president of the anti-slavery committee in Hartford, published the Charter Oak anti-slavery newspaper with the Connecticut Anti-Slavery Society of Hartford, and co-authored with his wife Isabella Beecher Hooker, the state bill in 1877 that gave married women more control of their property. Why isn’t he better known? Our guest for this episode is Erika Slocumb, Director of Interpretation & Visitor Experience at the . Erika is a scholar of Black history. She received her BA in Social Justice Education, her MS in Labor Studies, and she expects her PhD in African American Studies in the fall of 2026—all from University of Massachusetts Amherst. Be sure to go to the Stowe Center’s website at to read Erika’s new blog post about John Hooker. Plan to attend the Nook Farm Lawn Party and Fourth of July events-all the info is on the Stowe Center website. Grating the Nutmeg is partnering with Preservation Connecticut to bring you summer and fall episodes on saving historic barns, Connecticut sites found in the historic Green Book guide for black travelers, Mid-Century Modern architecture, and sites that reveal the state’s LGBTQ+ history. Connecticut’s historic places matter! ------------------------------------------ Don’t forget to subscribe to magazine today-our summer issue is a double-issue celebrating our nation’s 250th birthday! And set up your monthly donation to Grating the Nutmeg at ctexplored.org This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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230. Pursuing Happiness: New Horizons Village
05/15/2026
230. Pursuing Happiness: New Horizons Village
In 1955, a group of disabled young adults living at New Britain Memorial Hospital signed a letter declaring their intention to seek out "adventuresome living for the physically handicapped." They formed a nonprofit called New Horizons and set out on a thirty-year journey to raise money and navigate legal barriers in order to realize their most cherished dream: a housing complex for the disabled, run by the disabled. In 2026, New Horizons Village in Farmington turns 40. In this episode, Natalie Belanger of the gives you a capsule history of the New Horizons movement and speaks with current residents and staff about what New Horizons means to them. Many thanks to our participants: Patricia Robothom, Gary Strickland, Chuck Hutchins, Jen Carver, and Pam O'Neil. Special thanks to Stephanie Tetreault for her assistance in facilitating these interviews! The story of New Horizons is featured in the 's newest exhibition! The Museum is marking the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence with a new exhibition. reflects on moments throughout Connecticut history when its people came together, pushed back, and sparked change to pursue their own visions of life, liberty, and happiness in America. You'll see artifacts and learn stories stretching from the American Revolution to the modern civil rights revolution. ----------------------------------- Don’t forget to subscribe to magazine today-our summer issue is full of fun ideas for daytrips and staycations! And set up your monthly donation to Grating the Nutmeg at ctexplored.org This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Natalie Belanger and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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229. Irish Immigration in Art from the Fairfield Great Hunger Museum at the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum
05/01/2026
229. Irish Immigration in Art from the Fairfield Great Hunger Museum at the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum
Famine Irish, lace-curtain Irish, shanty Irish: the Irish Diaspora has shaped Connecticut’s European immigrant history from the 1840s. Traces of Irish history and culture in the state are not only found in archival and artifact collections but also through the historic buildings, neighborhoods, and cemeteries that stand across the state. Whether they were immigrants, expatriates, refugees, or indentured servants when they arrived from Ireland, 14 percent of Connecticut’s current residents claim Irish ancestry. In today’s episode, we take you to a new exhibition, curated by Ireland’s Great Hunger Museum of Fairfield now on exhibit at the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum. The exhibit has about 30 art pieces on view ranging from a 1714 map of Ireland to contemporary paintings completed in 2019. For anyone who’s watching The Gilded Age television show, a trip to the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion will immerse you in French Second Empire grandeur of the type seen on the show. One of the things that makes the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion perfect for the Irish immigration exhibit is that the mansion had Irish women as domestic servants and tells their story, that of the “Bridget’s” as they were known, in the mansion’s second floor live-in servants’ quarters. Our guest is John Foley, President of Ireland’s Great Hunger Museum of Fairfield, a new non-profit dedicated to sharing the story of the Irish Diaspora, picking up where the now closed museum at Quinnipiac University left off after Covid. Foley will share the plans for a new museum building to house the collection. Our thanks to the staff of the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum for the tour of the exhibit and the house. curated by Ireland’s Great Hunger Museum of Fairfield will be up until Sept 6, 2026, so it’s the perfect summer day trip! To find out more about the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum go to their website at I also want to thank my guest John Foley and encourage you to visit the website of Ireland’s Great Hunger Museum of Fairfield at -------------------------------------------------- Don’t forget to subscribe to magazine today - our summer issue is full of fun ideas for daytrips and staycations! And set up your monthly donation to Grating the Nutmeg at ctexplored.org This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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228. Sports Heaven: The Birth of ESPN in Bristol, Connecticut
04/15/2026
228. Sports Heaven: The Birth of ESPN in Bristol, Connecticut
If you are driving in Bristol, Connecticut-maybe you’re going to Lake Compounce Amusement Park - and suddenly you spy a cluster of huge satellite dishes, you might wonder if space aliens had really landed. But what you’ve discovered is the home base of ESPN - originally entitled the Entertainment & Sports Programming Network - shortened to ESPN in 1985. Every year tens of millions of fans watch ESPN but 47 years ago, a 24-hour sports television cable network was considered a wild and impossible idea. Our guests on this episode are the authors of the new audiobook published by Hachette Audio on April 7, 2026. Historian Mike Soltys was hired in the summer of 1980 as a college intern by ESPN’s founder, Bill Rasmussen, and served 43 years in ESPN’s corporate communications department, the last 20 as a vice president. He returned to ESPN in 2024 as a part-time Historian. Mike is serving as producer of a documentary Sports Heaven: The Birth of ESPN and co-author of the accompanying book. Garrett Sutton is an attorney and best-selling author of business and entrepreneurial books. He is co-author with Mike of Sports Heaven and is also the Executive Producer of the documentary film. ------------------------------------- Don’t forget to subscribe to magazine today-our summer issue is full of fun ideas for daytrips and staycations! And set up your monthly donation to Grating the Nutmeg at This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow host and executive producer on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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227. Pioneering Woman Sculptor Evelyn Beatrice Longman
04/01/2026
227. Pioneering Woman Sculptor Evelyn Beatrice Longman
I’ve got a story about an artist that I’ve been obsessed with for years. In this episode, Patricia Hoerth Batchelder talks about her new biography of Evelyn Beatrice Longman, The Woman Who Sculpted Golden Boy, Thomas Edison, and Other Monuments. Poor, motherless at five, and uneducated after elementary school, Longman made the highly ambitious claim at nineteen that she could create monumental sculpture. The book tells the story of how she created beauty, moved into upper class society, and succeeded in a field of art that was overwhelmingly dominated by men. Ms. Batchelder has worked for The Washington Star and written for The Tulsa Tribune before co-writing her father’s memoir. She is married to Nathaniel Horton Batchelder III, the grandson of sculptor Evelyn Beatrice Longman Batchelder. Look for by Patricia Batchelder and published in 2025 on Amazon or at your favorite bookstore. It’s also available at the publisher’s website, Bloomsbury.com. There are two places I’d encourage you to visit when the weather warms up. The first is the Spanish-American War Memorial in Hartford’s Bushnell Park. It’s on the south side on Elm Street-if you go at lunch time, there might be food trucks. The second is Chesterwood, sculptor Daniel Chester French’s summer estate in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. It’s only a smidge over the Connecticut border in the Berkshires and is run as a museum property by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Here’s the website: -------------------------------------------- Don’t forget to subscribe to magazine today-our summer issue is full of fun ideas for daytrips and staycations! Remember, you can help us celebrate our 10th anniversary and keep the podcast alive by pledging $10 dollars a month. It’s easy to set up a monthly donation on our website at Connecticut history matters - be part of it! This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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226. Abby (and Julia) Smith and Their Cows
03/15/2026
226. Abby (and Julia) Smith and Their Cows
Last year, in Episode 217, listeners were introduced to Hannah Smith. Born in 1767, Hannah was the matriarch of the non-conformist Smith Family of Glastonbury. In the 2020s, her diaries inspired Leonard Raybon, a music professor at Tulane, to compose an original mini-musical based on her writings. You can view the debut performance of "Hannah and Her Daughters" . This episode focuses on the next generation of the Smith family. Hannah Hickock married Zephaniah Smith of Glastonbury in 1786, and their marriage produced five daughters. Two of the daughters became nationally famous in the 1870s, around the time of the Bicentennial, for their stance in favor of women’s suffrage. Natalie Belanger is joined by Diane Hoover, Education Director of the , who told her about the Smith sisters’ upbringing, their many talents, and how the two youngest became involved in the suffrage fight – in a protest that centered around their pet cows. You’ll also hear about Julia Smith’s achievements as a Biblical scholar, and how a romantic entanglement at the age of 87 provides a rather sad end to her remarkable life. Image: Portrait of Abby and Julia Smith, c. 1877, Library of Congress -------------------------------- Like Grating the Nutmeg? Want to support it? Make a donation! 100% of the funds from your donation go directly to the production and promotion of the show. Go to to send your donation now. This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Natalie Belanger and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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CELEBRATING WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH
03/04/2026
CELEBRATING WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH
March is Women’s History Month! Here's 5 Not to Be Missed Stories!
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225. On Trial: Alfred Marder and Catherine Roraback - A Communist’s Arrest in 1950’s McCarthy-era New Haven (10th Anniversary Encore Release)
02/15/2026
225. On Trial: Alfred Marder and Catherine Roraback - A Communist’s Arrest in 1950’s McCarthy-era New Haven (10th Anniversary Encore Release)
Grating the Nutmeg is 10 years old! In celebration of our 10th anniversary, we are bringing you a remastered and re-edited edition of an episode we recorded in 2016 at the with Alfred Marder, Judge Andrew Roraback and his father Charles Roraback. This compelling first-person interview with Alfred Marder shares his experiences as a defendant in New Haven’s Smith trial. Mr. Marder died in 2023 at the age of 101. He was defended by civil rights attorney Catherine Roraback, an inductee in the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame. In 1954, 32-year-old Alfred Marder was arrested in New Haven along with several others under the Smith Act for allegedly working to overthrow the US government. After a lengthy trial, during which he was defended by the celebrated civil rights lawyer Catherine Roraback, he was acquitted. Hear Mr. Marder tell in his own words what he was fighting for and what it feels like when the full power of the state, federal, and local government is aimed at you. This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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224. Scholar, Activist, Trailblazer: The Enduring Legacy of Dr. Lorenzo Greene
01/30/2026
224. Scholar, Activist, Trailblazer: The Enduring Legacy of Dr. Lorenzo Greene
Connecticut is a small state that has had a huge national impact. In this episode, we celebrate someone that we are proud to say was born in Connecticut and went on to be a pioneering historian in Black history. Dr. Lorenzo Johnston Greene received his BA in from Howard University in 1924, his MA from Columbia University in 1926 and his Ph.D. in 1942. He was born in Ansonia, Connecticut. We can learn more about his family from the 1900 federal census record. His father Willie was born in 1858 in Virginia before the end of slavery, and his mother was born in West Virginia in 1870. Both came to Connecticut and by the time Lorenzo was born in 1899, he had five older brothers and sisters. The census states that both of his parents can read and write and their children are in school. By the time of the 1920 census, Lorenz has two older brothers who work in a brass mill. What made Lorenzo want to go to college and become a historian? When did he work with Dr. Carter Woodson, the “Father of Black History” and what were Greene’s own lasting contributions to the study of Black history? Our guest is Dr. Stacey Close, Associate Vice Provost and Vice President of Equity and Diversity at Eastern Connecticut State University. Dr. Close is a co-author of published by Wesleyan University Press, and a noted authority on Hartford and the Great Migration. You can learn more about that in GTN episode: . One last thing about Dr. Greene. In the 1930 federal census, he is 31 years old and working for Dr. Woodson as a field representative and research assistant. Greene lists his job as “Historical Investigating Officer” - he had such a strong sense of his mission even as a young man during the depths of the Great Depression. Thank you to Dr. Close. And thank you for listening! We’ll be back in two weeks with another episode of Grating the Nutmeg. History matters - be part of it. --------------------------------------- This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials - , Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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223. The ‘Great Temperance Times’ in Nineteenth-Century Black Connecticut
01/14/2026
223. The ‘Great Temperance Times’ in Nineteenth-Century Black Connecticut
At first glance, alcohol and racial equality might seem unrelated—but for Black activists, the temperance movement was a powerful vehicle for social change. In this episode of Grating the Nutmeg, Natalie Belanger of the Connecticut Museum chats with Mackenzie Tor about her research into Black temperance activism in 1830s and 1840s Connecticut. Mackenzie talks about how people like Maria Stewart, James Pennington, and the Beman family used temperance as a strategy for civic inclusion. Through their words and organizing efforts, from newspaper columns to church halls, abstaining from the bottle became a radical tool for political belonging in the hands of Connecticut’s Black communities. She also discusses the flip side of this – how accusations of intemperance could be wielded to bring down successful Black men, like New Haven’s William Lanson, when their business and civic ventures threatened the power of white elites. Mackenzie, a PhD Candidate in History at the University of Missouri, did research for this project at the Connecticut Museum as part of the New England Regional Fellowship Consortium. Learn more about the Consortium and the support it provides for scholars here: To find out how William Lanson changed the face of New Haven, see this CT Explored article by Stacey Close: You can read more about Stewart, Pennington, and the Bemans here: Finally, here’s a link to watch Mackenzie Tor give a more detailed look at the research she did at the Connecticut Museum of Culture and History’s Waterman Research Center on this topic: Caption image #1: The Colored American newspaper, 1841. Caption Image #2: The Tree of Temperance, Currier and Ives, 1872, Library of Congress. ---------------------------------------- Like Grating the Nutmeg? Want to support it? Make a donation! 100% of the funds from your donation go directly to the production and promotion of the show. Go to to send your donation now. This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Natalie Belanger and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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TOP 10 MOST STREAMED of ALL TIME!
01/01/2026
TOP 10 MOST STREAMED of ALL TIME!
The GOATs! Our most streamed episodes EVER! Don’t MISS these CT stories:
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HOLIDAY EPISODES
12/23/2025
HOLIDAY EPISODES
What better way to spend the holidays than curled up next to the fireplace with a mug of hot chocolate and your favorite Grating the Nutmeg episode! To celebrate, we’re spreading history cheer for all to hear.
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TOP 5 MOST STREAMED - 2025
12/16/2025
TOP 5 MOST STREAMED - 2025
2025 is almost GONE! Don’t miss our TOP FIVE most streamed episodes of the year! See more:
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222. Cabbage Patch Kids and West Hartford’s Toymaker Coleco
12/01/2025
222. Cabbage Patch Kids and West Hartford’s Toymaker Coleco
During this holiday season, it seems like the perfect time to bring you the story of one of the bestselling toys ever - Cabbage Patch Kids! Inducted into the Toy Hall of Fame in 2023, Cabbage Patch Kids set every toy industry sales record for three years running from 1983-86, and has become one of the longest-running doll franchises in the United States. How did a Connecticut company produce the hottest toy of the 1980s - and then go broke? The license to produce Cabbage Patch Kids has gone through a record 7 toy companies. This episode is on the Coleco years - the toymaker with their headquarters in West Hartford. Host Mary Donohue will share her experience buying the dolls and Natalie Belanger, Grating the Nutmeg producer from the her own childhood experience playing with the Cabbage Patch Kids. It’s hard to believe after such a successful toy, but Coleco Industries were bankrupt by 1989. The Hartford Courant published numerous full-page stories about what had gone wrong. The Courant reported that “With its revenues dropping and its debt mounting, Coleco faced some critical decisions. Toy industry analysts said the company should have slowed its spending, cut expenses and waited for sales to improve. Instead, Coleco chose to borrow more and spend more, trying to develop a product to rival Cabbage Patch Kids. But the new toys it introduced-Rambo action figures, Furskins stuffed bears, a talking Cabbage Patch doll and Starcom space toys for boys sold only moderately well.” Find out more in this episode! ------------------------------------------ To subscribe to Connecticut Explored, the magazine of Connecticut history, visit To watch Connecticut’s Hidden Gems on YouTube, visit We did it! Thanks to our listeners, Grating the Nutmeg is celebrating our 10th anniversary. With over 200,000 streams, over 200 episodes and heard in over 50 countries, Grating the Nutmeg brings CT’s big stories to listeners around the world! We’re planning our 2026 calendar now and need your support. Help us celebrate our 10th anniversary milestone by pledging $10 a month or making a $100 donation now on our website at ctexplored.org. History matters-be part of it! This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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221. New Haven’s Lt. Augusto Rodríguez, First Civil War Soldier from Puerto Rico
11/14/2025
221. New Haven’s Lt. Augusto Rodríguez, First Civil War Soldier from Puerto Rico
More than twenty thousand Hispanic Americans served in the Civil War. When Cuban-born Loreta Velázquez’s husband would not allow her to join him on the battlefield, she assumed the role of First Lieutenant Harry T. Buford to be near him. Philip Bazaar, born in Chile, was awarded the Medal of Honor for his courageous exploits during the assault of Fort Fisher. The spying efforts of Floridian Maria Dolores Sánchez and her two sisters led to a Union defeat at the Battle of Horse Landing. Delving into the lives of these individuals, historian A.J. Schenkman, author of Hispanic Americans of the Civil War, published by the History Press in 2025, uncovers this often-overlooked aspect of Civil War history. Hispanic soldiers came from different countries. Mexico had declared its independence from Spain in 1821 and later abolished slavery in 1837. Some soldiers and sailors traced their families to Cuba and Puerto Rico, which were still part of Spain. Or from Spain itself or its other colonies. In this episode, Schenkman uncovers a bombshell story about New Haven’s Augusto Rodríguez, the first known Civil War soldier from Puerto Rico. When this story was published in the Summer 2025 issue of Connecticut Explored magazine, the phone started to ring off the hook. Television news channels and newspapers quickly picked up this remarkable story. Grating the Nutmeg has covered the courageous Puerto Rican men of the 65th regiment founded in 1899 when Puerto Rico became a United States territory in episode #184 but not someone this early in our military history. A. J. Schenkman is a New York-based writer. He is a social studies teacher in Ulster County, New York, and a former municipal historian. Schenkman is also author of several books about local, regional, and national history. He currently writes for Litchfield and Dutchess Magazines, as well as the Shawangunk Journal. To contact A.J. Schenkman, visit his website at To subscribe to Connecticut Explored, the magazine of Connecticut history, visit To watch Connecticut’s Hidden Gems on YouTube, visit ------------------------------------- This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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220. Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power Plant: The Promise and Peril of Nuclear Energy
10/31/2025
220. Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power Plant: The Promise and Peril of Nuclear Energy
The Connecticut Yankee atomic power plant was one of the earliest commercial nuclear reactors in New England. Though it was dismantled at the turn of the 21st century, its legacy remains, both for the landscape of the Connecticut River Valley where it once stood, and for contemporary debates about energy today. This episode explores the plant’s life and afterlife, the activists who opposed it, and the promises and perils of nuclear power in the 1960s and today, through the reminiscences of Paul Gionfriddo, a former state legislator and longtime president of People’s Action for Clean Energy, a group that has advocated for conservation and renewable energy in Connecticut since the early 1970s. This episode is presented by Dr. Amrys Williams and Jon Kozak. Williams is a historian of science, technology,and the environment who serves as the Executive Director of the . Her recent research projects have focused on anti-nuclear activism, radioecology, and the public interpretation of nuclear places. Kozak is a graduate student in Public History at Central Connecticut State University and the Communications Manager for the Connecticut League of Museums. His recent research has focused on energy landscapes and the Connecticut Yankee plant. Their guest is Paul Gionfriddo is a former state representative and mayor of Middletown, a graduate of Wesleyan University, and a retired nonprofit professional. He has advocated for mental health and renewable energy, and served as President of People’s Action for Clean Energy from 1975 until 1999. For more information, visit these sites: -Connecticut Yankee website: -People’s Action for Clean Energy website: -1960s film of the construction of the Connecticut Yankee Nuclear Power Plant: -The Atom and Eve, 1960s film promoting CT Yankee plant and atomic power in New England: ; -US Department of Energy Flickr Photo Stream, with many images of the Haddam Neck Plant before and during its operating lifetime: -Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power Company, Haddam Neck Plant Records at the University of Connecticut Archives and Special Collections: -Wesleyan Anti-Nuclear Protests Collection, Wesleyan University Archives and Special Collections: -Connecticut Collections: Production notes -Projector sound effect: cine-projector SFX.wav by Rollo145 -- -- License: Attribution NonCommercial 3.0 -Archival audio from: -Gene Starbecker, The Atom and Eve (Bay State Film Production Inc., 1966). -Construction of Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power Plant, produced for Connecticut Yankee by Kevin Donovan Films, Glastonbury, CT, ca. 1968. Photo Credit Photo of CY when it was in operation from the Department of Energy. Connecticut League of Museums: This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Amyrs Williams and Jon Kozak. GTN podcast engineer is Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history.
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219. Transgender History and Connecticut Transgender Pioneer Dr. Alan L. Hart
10/15/2025
219. Transgender History and Connecticut Transgender Pioneer Dr. Alan L. Hart
The transgender community has struggled to receive recognition and equality. In this episode, we explore the history of the transgender community over the last 100 years with Dr. Susan Stryker and the life of Dr. Alan L. Hart, a transgender medical doctor working on the forefront of an urgent public health crisis, tuberculosis, in Connecticut. Hart, Director of Connecticut’s Office of TB Rehabilitation, is credited with saving countless lives. My guest is Dr. Susan Stryker, author of Transgender History, the Root of Today’s Revolution, published in 2017. Transgender History, Third Edition: A Resource for Today’s Struggle-and Tomorrow’s will be published in Febuary, 2026. Dr. Susan Stryker holds a distinguished visiting appointment at Stanford's Michelle R. Clayman Institute for Gender Research at Stanford University, and is Professor Emerita of Gender, Women's and Sexuality Studies at the University of Arizona, where she directed the Institute for LGBT Studies for many years. She is the author or editor of numerous articles, books and anthologies. A collection of previously published short works, When Monsters Speak: A Susan Stryker Reader, was published by Duke University Press in 2024. She is also an Emmy-winning documentary filmmaker for Screaming Queens: The Riot at Compton's Cafeteria. In the documentary, you’ll meet Dr. Stryker and some of the transgender women and drag queens who fought police harassment at Compton’s Cafeteria in San Francisco’s Tenderloin in 1966 three years before the famous riot at Stonewall Inn bar in New York City. You’ll find the documentary on Amazon Prime. To contact Dr. Stryker, visit her website at For more information on Dr. Alan L. Hart, go to these resources: West Hartford Pride West Hartford Pride supports, celebrates, and uplifts the LGBTQAI+ Community by providing resources, events, education, and social justice initiatives. Find out more about visiting their website at westhartfordpride.org Preservatlon Connecticut LGBTQ+ Historic Sites Survey Preservation Connecticut, in partnership with scholars and activists, has embarked on documenting Connecticut’s LGBTQ+ sites. Interwoven through these places are stories of resilience, innovation, and the pursuit of equality that transcend the traditional boundaries of class, race, ethnicity, and religion. If you're interested in learning more or contributing to this survey project, please visit Grating the Nutmeg Three-part LGBTQ+ Series 2025 Connecticut Explored magazine and our podcast, Grating the Nutmeg, have featured many of the heritage trails that mark the important histories and sites of Connecticut’s people. Preservation Connecticut has undertaken a survey of LGBTQ+ heritage sites across the state. Now, Grating the Nutmeg and Preservation Connecticut have teamed up to bring you a three-episode podcast series that pairs new research on LGBTQ+ identity and activism with accounts of the Connecticut places where history was made. The episodes include a thriving vegetarian cafe-bookstore run by lesbian feminists in a working-class former factory town, , a transgender medical researcher working on an urgent public health issue in the center of Connecticut politics, Episode 219, and a gay, Jewish, best-selling children’s book author in affluent Fairfield County, . Connecticut Humanites The 2025 LGBTQ+ Three-part series received grant support from CT Humanities, connecting people to the humanities through grants, partnerships, and public programs. Visit our website to learn about our funding opportunities and capacity building grants. ------------------------------------------ Like Grating the Nutmeg? Want to support it? Make a donation! 100% of the funds from your donation go directly to the production and promotion of the show. Go to ctexplored.org to send your donation now. This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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Get cool stuff in our second annual online #GTN benefit auction!
10/02/2025
Get cool stuff in our second annual online #GTN benefit auction!
We have amazing items for you in our second annual online benefit auction! The auction is the largest fundraiser of the year for our award-winning CT history podcast. New episodes are released every two weeks full of CT history makers and untold stories, and all episodes are free for all to listen to! Bidding begins on September 25, 2025 at midnight. Bids close at 11:59 on October 18, 2025.
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218. Connecticut in the Industrial Revolution: Making Buttons in Cheshire
10/01/2025
218. Connecticut in the Industrial Revolution: Making Buttons in Cheshire
A button sounds like a very ordinary thing. But button production in Cheshire was part of Connecticut’s pioneering role in the precision manufacturing revolution of the nineteenth century. According to connecticuthistory.org, button production began with pewter buttons in the mid-eighteenth century but quickly turned to brass in the early nineteenth century. By 1860s, machines in the Scovill Brass factory in Waterbury produced 216,000 buttons per day. This type of industrial production volume for an everyday necessity such as buttons propelled investors and entrepreneurs to establish companies such as the Ball & Socket Manufacturing Company. But what were the benefits and costs of Cheshire’s industrial development during Connecticut’s Industrial Revolution? Cheshire’s Ball & Socket factory has been transformed into a community arts center as we discovered in Grating the Nutmeg episode 167. New Lives for Old Factories. But its industrial past has not been forgotten-new research by noted historian Elizabeth Fox has been shared with the public in outdoor signage and a feature story in the Fall 2024 issue of Connecticut Explored. Fellow historian Agnes Wnuk has been researching the history of the factory and its effect on Cheshire. My guests Elizabeth Fox and Agnes Wnuk today will share what they’ve uncovered so far! Elizabeth “Betsy” Fox is a retired museum consultant. She lives in Cheshire and has been involved with Ball & Socket Arts as a volunteer for over ten years. She has also written some great articles for Connecticut Explored magazine. Historian Agnes Wnuk has been involved in preservation work at museums and libraries. Ball & Socket Arts will present a public program on the oral history project and button production at 6:30pm on Nov. 13th, 2025 at the Cheshire Public Library. Get more information here: Did you know Waterbury, CT has been a hub of button-making for over 200 years? Buttons aren’t just functional; they’re miniature works of art! Opening October 12, Beau McCall: Buttons On! is the first-ever retrospective of the renowned textile artist known as “The Button Man,” showcasing his striking wearable and visual art created entirely with buttons. The exhibition is complemented by the Mattatuck Museum’s impressive Button Gallery, home to over 20,000 buttons, offering a unique blend of creativity and history through January 4. Get more information here: ------------------------------------------ If you love Connecticut history, be sure to support Grating the Nutmeg by bidding on some fabulous one-of-a-kind experiences in our online benefit auction! History matters! Get more information here: To listen to our episode on Ball & Socket Art’s transformation, stream free here: This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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217. The Smith Family of Glastonbury: Hannah and Her Daughters
09/14/2025
217. The Smith Family of Glastonbury: Hannah and Her Daughters
In this episode of Grating the Nutmeg, Natalie Belanger tells us about how two journals kept by a Revolutionary War-era girl in the ’s collection have inspired an original work of music. Several years ago, Leonard Raybon (Associate Professor of Music at Tulane University) encountered two journals and other writings by Hannah Hadassah Hickok, held at the Connecticut Museum. Hannah was the matriarch of the non-conformist Smith Family of Glastonbury. Her daughters would go on to became nationally famous for protesting their lack of voting rights in the 1870s by refusing to pay their taxes — an act that resulted in the town of Glastonbury confiscating their property, including their beloved cows. Inspired by the young Hannah's unique voice, Leonard composed an original mini-musical based on her writings. You'll hear Natalie and Leonard's conversation about what moved him to compose the piece and how it fits into his larger project of producing "Ameri-musicals" that use song to get us to think about the past. Professor Raybon, the Connecticut Museum, and the are partnering to present this work to the public in a one-time performance on November 8th, 2025 at 7:30 pm at at 2183 Main Street, Glastonbury. First Church was the Smith family’s congregation, so it’s a fitting place to host this unique musical experience! You can visit the to learn more about the concert. For more information on the Smith family, visit the , or read this from the Library of Congress. -------------------------------------- Like Grating the Nutmeg? Want to support it? Make a donation! 100% of the funds from your donation go directly to the production and promotion of the show. Go to ctexplored.org to send your donation now. This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Natalie Belanger and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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216. Brewing Community: Labor, Alcohol, and Unrest in Industrial New Britain
09/01/2025
216. Brewing Community: Labor, Alcohol, and Unrest in Industrial New Britain
Immigrants from Lithuania who made their way to New Britain, Connecticut at the beginning of the twentieth century found work in the city’s factories turning out tools and hardware. Their weekly routine included work, church and socializing at neighborhood saloons. But major upheavals in American society were happening at the time that affected their lives including the rise of organized labor, the temperance movement, anti-immigrant sentiment, and labor strikes. In this episode, we have two new voices in public history, Central Connecticut State University students Jon Kozak and Nathaniel Smith. They produced the episode as a class project under Dr. Leah Glazier at Central Connecticut State University. This episode reminds us that some of the most interesting history can be found all around you in your own community. A big thanks to Jon Kosak and Nathaniel Smith for their hard work in producing this episode. I also want to thank Dr. Glazier, professor of public history for her help. Contact Jon Kosak at: Contact Dr. Leah Glazier at: Jon and Nathaniel used a wide variety of local history materials including oral histories and the New Britain Herald newspaper. Museum Collections: , , , and the at Central Connecticut State University, specifically their special collections and archive of the New Britain Herald newspaper. Oral Histories: John Skritulsky, had been interviewed by the Federal Writers Project in 1938, by a writer in the FWP’s New Britain office by the name of Albert Kayeski. Being Lithuanian himself, Kayeski understood the importance of this ethnic community in telling the story of an industrialized New Britain. Several of his other profiles bear mention of taverns, be it Skritulsky’s or others as places to gather. Use of New Britain directories from the turn of the twentieth century reinforced the prevalence and importance of these institutions. It must be noted that for the clarity of our story, the character of Jonas, whose story was found in a FWP profile by Kayeski, History of a Lithuanian Immigrant, was originally listed with the name John, and was given no last name. We changed his name to Jonas, the Lithuanian translation of John, to avoid confusion with John Skritulsky in the narrative. No other names were altered from the original source material. Manuscript reference: Portrait of Occupations, Investments, and Businesses of Lithuanian Immigrants in New Britain Connecticut by the Reverend William Wolkovich-Valkavicius from 1979, Local History Room, New Britain Public Library. Song Credit: This version, by the musical group Ugniavijas, recorded in 2014 is a centuries-old Lithuanian folk song whose title roughly translates to “Sweet Beer of the Oats. The original lyrics with an English translation can be found It is a song that remains important to the people of Lithuania and is still sung today, often by schoolchildren. ----------------------------------------------------- Connecticut Landmarks Event Join at East Haddam’s Palmer-Warner House for our second annual Summer Pipes & Cider! Sip barrel-aged cider and whiskey from Yankee Cider Company. Enjoy a bagpipe performance by the Portland & District Pipers, accompanied by a scenic trail walk. Plus, bring your friends for a round of pub trivia with prizes for the top two teams. Are you a fan of the TV series, Outlander? Come wearing your best Outlander attire and test your knowledge during trivia! Extend your experience with a tour of the Palmer-Warner House, which previous owner Frederic Palmer called Dunstaffnage as a nod to his Scottish heritage. Raise a glass, embrace the music, and celebrate the magic of Scotland! Event and tour tickets are available at . We hope to see you at 1 pm on Saturday, September 13 for Summer Pipes & Cider! Support GTN! We need your financial support now more than ever. Grating the Nutmeg talks to historians, researchers, and community members to bring you compelling stories about your state that you haven’t heard before. Make a donation! 100% of the funds from your donation go directly to the production and promotion of the show. Go to ctexplored.org to send your donation now. And don’t forget that our Second Annual Online Benefit Auction is coming up in September. This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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215. Connecticut’s Wild Visionary: Children’s Author Maurice Sendak
08/15/2025
215. Connecticut’s Wild Visionary: Children’s Author Maurice Sendak
Artist and author Maurice Sendak was able to achieve significant and enduring success in art and children’s literature during his lifetime. But what secrets did he had to keep from his family, publishers, parents, librarians, and readers as a gay, Jewish man negotiating the field of children’s literature? Sendak wrote and illustrated books that nurtured children and adults alike. Winner of the 1964 Caldecott Medal for Where the Wild Things Are, in 1970 Sendak became the first American illustrator to receive the international Hans Christian Anderson Award, given in recognition of his entire body of work. Sendak’s work has been the subject of several extensive retrospective art shows at prestigious museums across the country. Sendak lived in Ridgefield, Connecticut with his partner Dr. Eugene Glynn for over 50 years. In this episode, my guest is Dr. Golan Moskowitz, author of Wild Visionary, Maurice Sendak in Queer Jewish Context, published by Stanford University Press in 2021. Dr. Moskowitz is an Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies and a faculty member of the Grant Center for the American Jewish Experience at Tulane University. He serves as Book Review Editor for Holocaust and Genocide Studies and as director of the Jewish American and Holocaust Literature Symposium. Golan is currently working on a cultural history of Jewish American involvement in the art of drag. To contact Dr. Mostowitz, please see below: His faculty page: For speaking inquiries, please contact Tulane University's Jewish Studies Department: The Maurice Sendak Foundation: https://www.sendakfoundation.org/ Connecticut Landmarks LGBTQ+ Archives The archival collections of East Haddam’s Palmer-Warner House include the diaries and letters of previous residents Frederic Palmer and his partner Howard Metzger. On view during the museum’s open hours through August 23,2025, “Letters of Unity” explores the evolution of LGBTQ+ communication over more than a century through the stories of Frederic, Howard, and other members of LGBTQ+ communities. From love letters to social media and personal diaries to protest flyers, this display showcases how love, resistance, and solidarity have been expressed through various mediums. Purchase tickets at Preservatlon Connecticut LGBTQ+ Historic Sites Survey Preservation Connecticut, in partnership with scholars and activists, has embarked on documenting Connecticut’s LGBTQ+ sites. Interwoven through these places are stories of resilience, innovation, and the pursuit of equality that transcend the traditional boundaries of class, race, ethnicity, and religion. If you're interested in learning more or contributing to this survey project, please visit Ridgefield Pride Ridgefield Connecticut Pride fosters belonging, provides support, and celebrates the LGBTQ+ community in Ridgefield and beyond. Fostering a sense of belonging for LGBTQ+ individuals, their families, and friends and celebrating the richness and diversity of the community. Check out their website for more information at https://ridgefieldctpride.com Grating the Nutmeg Three-part LGBTQ+ Series 2025 Connecticut Explored magazine and our podcast, Grating the Nutmeg, have featured many of the heritage trails that mark the important histories and sites of Connecticut’s people. Preservation Connecticut has undertaken a survey of LGBTQ+ heritage sites across the state. Now, Grating the Nutmeg and Preservation Connecticut have teamed up to bring you a three-episode podcast series that pairs new research on LGBTQ+ identity and activism with accounts of the Connecticut places where history was made. The episodes include a thriving vegetarian cafe-bookstore run by lesbian feminists in a working-class former factory town, a transgender medical researcher working on an urgent public health issue in the center of Connecticut politics, and a gay, Jewish, best-selling children’s book author in affluent Fairfield County. Our first LGBTQ+ episode, #212, available to listen to now, told the story of feminist and lesbian restaurants from across the country with Dr. Alex Ketchum. We visited Bloodroots, a lesbian-run vegan restaurant in Bridgeport that is celebrating 48 years in business. Connecticut Humanites The 2025 LGBTQ+ Three-part series received grant support from CT Humanities, connecting people to the humanities through grants, partnerships, and public programs. Visit our website to learn about our funding opportunities and capacity building grants. https://cthumanities.org/ -------------------------------------- Like Grating the Nutmeg? Want to support it? Make a donation! 100% of the funds from your donation go directly to the production and promotion of the show. Go to ctexplored.org to send your donation now. And don’t forget that our Second Annual Online Auction is coming up in September. This episode of Grating the Nutmeg was produced by Mary Donohue and engineered by Patrick O’Sullivan at Follow GTN on our socials-Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and BlueSky. Follow executive producer Mary Donohue on Facebook and Instagram at West Hartford Town Historian. Join us in two weeks for our next episode of Grating the Nutmeg, the podcast of Connecticut history. Thank you for listening!
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