Connecticut River Museum marks 50th year
The Connecticut River Museum in Essex is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
The museum launched its 50th year with the annual Brenda Milkofsky Curatorial Fund Dinner, which honored its founding director and unveiled the newest acquisition, a newly commissioned painting that depicts the House of Good Hope. It was created by historical artist Len Tantillo and is on view in the museum’s first-floor gallery.
The Connecticut River Museum tells the stories of the people who lived and worked along the Connecticut River.
The museum is now soliciting stories for its oral history project. Director Elizabeth Kaeser said that, as the museum celebrates its 50th, it wants to capture stories about the river, in part, to offer the next generation a visceral, tangible way to experience what the river once was.
“Over the past 50 years, the River has experienced an incredible rebound. We hope that the flora and fauna that now call the river and its banks home will stick around for years to come. But it’s important to remember that the Connecticut River was not always so clean. It was not always a nice place for swimming and fishing. If we want to continue to access the River as a place of recreation and enjoyment and to continue to provide habitats for the many species of animals in the watershed, we must commit to the River for the next 50 years and beyond. We hope that having stories of the River’s past and present will help everyone make the best choices for the Connecticut River’s future,” Kaeser said in a statement.
The museum will be the site for an environmental symposium on June 23 and a community celebration day on Sept. 22.