Dive into the history of the development of the iconic American backyard! As patios replaced front porches, the backyard became an extension of the home – a private personal oasis – a place for cooking, entertaining, playing, and relaxing.
current exhibitions
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Patios, Pools, & the Invention of the American Backyard
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Hamilton: His World, His Words, His Hair
Inspired by the hit Broadway musical, this exhibit features artifacts from the life and times of Alexander Hamilton, including a pair of dueling pistols, letters written by Hamilton, and even a lock of Hamilton’s hair!
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Veeder Living Room
The Connecticut Historical Society is located in a Colonial Revival mansion originally owned by inventor Curtis Veeder.
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Making Connecticut
Don’t miss this exhibit 400+ years in the making! Colorful, interactive, and filled with more than 500 historic objects, images, and documents, Making Connecticut is the story of all the people of Connecticut, from the 1500s through today.
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Inn & Tavern Signs of Connecticut
The Connecticut Historical Society’s collection numbering more than 60 signs is by far the largest and most spectacular in the country.
upcoming exhibitions
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Rebuild via Home Run: Baseball in Connecticut
Photographs and objects from the CHS collection will help tell Connecticut’s baseball story, including famous players, integration, women’s softball, and the impact of baseball on urban development.
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Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow
This exhibit will explore the African American struggle for full citizenship and racial equality that unfolded in the 50 years after the Civil War.
online exhibitions
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Connecticut: 50 Objects/50 Stories Online Gallery
What defines Connecticut? See the suggestions made by people from across the state.
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Downtown Hartford Walking Tour
A mobile walking tour app helps visitors of downtown Hartford explore their surroundings. The app features buildings constructed in the “fourth build” and their impact on how much Hartford has changed.
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Collection Highlights
The CHS collection has more than 265,000 artifacts & images, over 3.5 million manuscripts, & over 125,000 books & pamphlets dating from the 1600s to today.
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Remembering G. Fox & Co.
Once America’s largest privately-owned department store, G. Fox & Co. operated in downtown Hartford, Connecticut, from 1847 until 1993.
past exhibitions
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From Their Hands and Lands: Artifacts from Connecticut’s Enfield Shakers
This exhibit highlights the Enfield, Connecticut Shaker community, celebrating 125 years of their craftsmanship, distinctive design style, and entrepreneurial agricultural practices.
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Facing War: Connecticut in World War I
This exhibit will explore how people responded to the conflict and how it impacted life during and after the war.
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Passing It On: Traditional Arts Apprenticeships
The exhibit will display the work of masters and apprentices from the broad range of ethnic and occupational groups that have participated over the years.
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That’s Weird
“Weird” objects can have surprising and unique histories if you take a second look.
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Visions/Revisions: The Print Transformed
This exhibition features two works from each of the 25 participating artists based on a common theme or subject of the artist’s choice.
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Victorian Fashion Crosses the Pond, 1840-1900
Long before Queen Victoria inspired a television series, she inspired what women in Connecticut considered fashionable.
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Connecticut’s Founding Documents
On view are early documents instrumental in the formation of a new type of government in the 1600s.
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Connecticut Colonial Currency
Featuring 39 pieces of paper currency, Connecticut Colonial Currency highlights the rare Connecticut currency in the CHS collection.
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Language, Culture, Communities: 200 Years of Impact by the American School for the Deaf
In 1817, the American School for the Deaf (ASD) established the first permanent school for the deaf in the United States. It created a new standardized language—American Sign Language—resulting in a deaf community and culture that continues to advance equality.
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Sisu and Creativity: Finnish Cultural Heritage in Connecticut
The CHS and the Finnish American Heritage Society of Canterbury will present an exhibit of Finnish history in Connecticut.
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A Place for All People: Introducing the National Museum of African American History and Culture
A Place for All People: Introducing the National Museum of African American History and Culture is a commemorative poster exhibit celebrating the opening of the Smithsonian’s newest museum.
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Connecticut Dances – A Visual History
This exhibition, designed and produced by the Connecticut Dance Alliance, brings to life the valuable contribution of dance to the cultural vitality of Connecticut.
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Connecticut Traditional Artists and Their Communities
In 2016, the Connecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program (CCHAP) at the Connecticut Historical Society (CHS) marks 25 years of documenting the state’s diverse cultural traditions and sharing the artistic creations and community cultural practices of folk artists living here.
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Connecticut Innovates!
Innovate.The word is used to describe the creation of new ideas, new concepts, new things – but is something innovative just because it is new, or because it changes society?
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Mas: Costumes from Hartford’s West Indian Community
Mas: Costumes from Hartford’s West Indian Community exhibit showcases Trinidad-style carnival costumes (Mas) made by Hartford teens during a summer 2016 Mas Camp, the sixth year of a collaboration of CHAP and the Connecticut International Cultural Carnival Association (CICCA) under the direction of Linford “Junior” Miller.
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Mas: Carnival Costumes from Hartford’s West Indian Community
Mas: Carnival Costumes from Hartford’s West Indian Community exhibit showcases Trinidad-style carnival costumes (Mas) made by Hartford teens during a summer 2018 Mas Camp, the eighth year of a collaboration of CHAP and the Connecticut International Cultural Carnival Association (CICCA) under the direction of Linford “Junior” Miller.
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The Sole of Connecticut: A History of Connecticut Shoes
Shoes have stories to tell. They reveal early crafting techniques and the enterprise of shoemaking, from materials, methods, artistry, and manufacturers to maintenance and repair.
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Girl Scouts of Connecticut
The CHS is partnering with the Girl Scouts of Connecticut to create an exhibit about the history of the organization as they celebrate the Centennial Anniversary of the Gold Award.
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Early Copper Coins of Connecticut
The exhibit features authentic 18th century coins and also reproductions and counterfeit coins to show educate the public on the range of existing coins.
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The Sole of Connecticut
Featuring over 30 pairs ranging from the early republic to the contemporary.
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Clocks: Objects of Art, Keepers of Time
To coincide with the 2016 Connecticut Spring Antique show, the CHS is organizing a display of shelf clocks from its collection.
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The First Congregational Church of Woodstock Celebrates 325 Years: 1690-2015
The story begins before the establishment of the church, when the land was inhabited by the Wabbaquassets and John Eliot came to preach.
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Connecticut Captured: A 21st Century Look at an American Classic
Carol M. Highsmith has been taking photographs for more than 35 years and has been called “America’s Photographer.”
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Beatrice Fox Auerbach: The Woman, Her World & Her Wardrobe
Beatrice Fox Auerbach (1887-1968) is one of the most famous women in Connecticut history. Mention her or the G. Fox & Co. department store to anyone over 40 who grew up in Connecticut, and you’re bound to hear a personal story or recollection.
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From High Collars to Bee’s Knees: The Downton Abbey Era In Connecticut
This exhibit explores the fashion trends that reflected the tumultuous social events occurring in the early Twentieth Century in Connecticut.
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Drawn And Cornered: 35 Years Of Englehart Cartoons
Bob Englehart’s editorial cartoons have been appearing on the pages of the Hartford Courant for the past 35 years. He began mastering his craft for newspapers in Chicago and Dayton, Ohio, where he was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize in the Editorial Cartoon category in 1979.
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Mas: Costumes from Hartford’s West Indian Community
Mas: Costumes from Hartford’s West Indian Community exhibit showcases Trinidad-style carnival costumes (Mas) made by Hartford teens during a summer 2015 Mas Camp, the fifth year of a collaboration of CHAP and the Connecticut International Cultural Carnival Association (CICCA) under the direction of Linford “Junior” Miller.
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Growing Up in Connecticut
“What was it like when you were a kid?” The Connecticut Historical Society is collecting objects and stories about growing up in Connecticut.
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Connecticut Mourns Lincoln
One hundred fifty years ago on April 14—five days after Confederacy general Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Court House, ending the Civil War—the unthinkable happened.
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Connecticut Decorative Arts: Masterpieces from the CHS Collection
This exhibit features decorative arts highlights from the collection, curated by members of the new CHS Decorative Arts Affinity Group.
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Inspired by the Past: Works by Robert Charles Hudson
This display features artwork inspired by Robert Charles Hudson’s family traditions and African-American heritage. A fourth-generation quilter, Hudson weaves together techniques and oral traditions handed down from his great-grandmother.
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Connecticut: 50 Objects/50 Stories
If an object could define Connecticut, what would it be? What objects—from the past and from today—help tell the stories that define our state as a changing place, a community, and an idea?
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(Re)Building Hartford: A City Captured by Artist Richard Welling
Connecticut artist Richard Welling chronicled the ever-changing Hartford cityscape through detailed ink drawings.
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Hartford Seen: Photographs by Pablo Delano
Pablo Delano’s contemporary documentary photographs of Hartford portray the city’s public and private buildings, street scenes, and storefronts.
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The Hartford Courant, Connecticut, and the Country
America’s oldest continuously published newspaper celebrates 250 years with the Connecticut Historical Society with an exhibit!
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(Re)Using Hartford’s Historic Buildings
This satellite exhibit will explore the perceived value & practice of historic preservation of the historic buildings in Hartford.
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Building Public Education in Hartford: A Brief History
This satellite exhibit will visually explore the changing footprint of public schools and other learning centers in Hartford.
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Building a Home in Hartford: A Brief History
This satellite exhibit will explore the history of residential neighborhoods in and near downtown Hartford.
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Building Arts & Culture in Downtown Hartford: A Brief History
This satellite exhibit will visually explore the presence of arts and culture institutions in downtown Hartford.
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Wheels for All
In conjunction with EnvisionFest, a selection of early bicycles from the CHS collection will be on display at Connecticut’s Old State House
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