Did you know that there are over 200 organizations identified as “Historical Societies” registered with the Connecticut Secretary of the State’s Office? And did you know that of these, there are over 10 Historical Organizations serving the entire state of Connecticut? And did you further know, that there are over 25 local Historical Societies situated within a 25 mile radius of EC-CHAP in Willington, Connecticut? (Source: https://portal.ct.gov/SOTS/Register-Manual/SectionX/Historical-Societies)
Local Historical Societies, Museums, Universities, and Historians provide a rich knowledge of area history – possessing important writings, oral histories, original photographs, artifacts, research, and other resources that describe the evolution of the area they serve. This collection of unique assets and knowledge assists in answering critical questions, and provides a road map of sorts to help explain the challenges, hardship, innovation, rewards, and growth that leads to who and what we are today.
Imagine if these organizations and individuals are able to come together to share this knowledge in coordinated public forums. If each organization is given a platform to communicate and describe the historical significance of their piece of the world, what new knowledge and connections could be made? We believe a shared model of collaboration and equity that promotes discourse and engages collective knowledge will result in a heightened awareness and importance of history, and the need to continue to preserve the valuable resources that tell our story.
As a part of addressing this broader historical view, EC-CHAP intends to begin dialog with local, regional and statewide historical organizations and individuals to facilitate opportunities for conversation, collaboration, and programming. There appear to be pockets of rich history just waiting for connections to be made. As your regional cultural organization, we hope to play a small part in bringing together the many folks who can share knowledge, common interests, and help to connect the historical “dots” that will yield better understandings.
Initial Introduction: April 7, 2019
Session-#1: May 14, 2019 (Session-#1 Summary)
Session-#2: July 17, 2019
If you are interested in exploring a proposed model for collaboration, and helping to be a part of this synergistic effort to raise historical awareness and preserve the past, please contact us:
EC-CHAP at info@ec-chap.org, or call 518-791-9474.
Remember... “The future is just history waiting to happen” - EC-CHAP