Wine & Cheese at the Denison Homestead

The Denison Society

Invites You

to a

Wine and Cheese Reception

and

Tour of the Denison Homestead Museum

on

Friday, August 1, 2008

5:30- 7:30 PM

120 Pequotsepos Road, Mystic CT

This reception is part of our annual Denison Reunion Weekend and an opportunity for The Denison Society to thank our Friends and volunteers and to introduce ourselves to others. It is surprising how many people have lived in this area all their lives but say they have never heard of us. The Denison Society was formed in 1930 as a family society when house museums were in vogue. However, what turned out to be unique was not only the Society commitment to local history, but the Denison Society commitment to the environment and open space. Maggie Jones, director of the Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center, stated it this way, "Long before there were Nature Conservancies, before there were any local land trusts, in fact prior to any general awareness about nature education and habitat preservation, The Denison Society, of Stonington, CT made a commitment to environmental preservation." The Society created the first nature/wildlife center in 1946 and leased 125 acres to it for a nominal fee of $1.00 a year, a lease that still continues to the year 2030! Today the Society is open to both Denison family members and Friends. We still own about 160 acres of land, part of the original land granted to Captain George Denison in 1654 by John Winthrop Jr. In 1992 we spear headed The Denison Fund Campaign to purchase the Morgan Farm land, 50 acres below our house, where we now hold the Denison Farm Market. (This land was to be a sub-division with a road running from the Aquarium to Pequotsepos Road.) We also run a seasonal museum for the public and sponsor local events, reenactments and school programs. In May we had a CPTV documentary filmed on Frederick Douglass at the Homestead. We currently have an exhibit on the filming and local slavery. We look forward to seeing you on August 1.
The Reception will be outside on our lawn weather permitting or inside the museum if inclement weather.
We hope to see you there!
Jean Evans, President of the Denison Society
RSVP membership@DenisonSociety.org or djevans3@aol.com
860-536-9248 http://www.denisonsociety.org/

A Visit to Portland Rose Garden

Diane Davis visited The International Rose Test Garden, in Portland, Oregon. It is the oldest official continuously operated public use test garden in the U.S. Its primary purpose is to serve as a testing ground for new rose varieties. The 4.5 acre garden with over 7,000 rose plants is on a hill with beautiful views of the city below, and of Mt. Hood in the distance. We have been here probably six times in the last dozen years or so, and today was one of the few days we could not see Mt. Hood. The main season for the roses passed by a couple of weeks ago, but there were still many beautiful specimens.

More on Farmer's Market

In case you missed it there was a good article in the Hartford Courant on Connecticut Farmer's Markets. >Click here to read the article. Or you can go directly to the list of Connecticut Farmer's Markets.

Arija's Summer Garden

I thought I'd give you an update on my gardening activities.
A week ago I had a group from New Zealand come tour my garden. The weather co-operated and we had a wonderful tour. A couple of "Kiwis" even informed me that viewing my garden was the highlight of their visit to CT.
Last Saturday I had an opportunity to visit Louis Raymond's garden in Hopkinton, RI. It certainly was not the run of the mill garden. Hopefully we may have him as a club speaker sometime next year, although he does "speak Latin" ...
Last Sunday I entered the CT Rose Society's annual Rose Show in Hartford and walked away with 11 (eleven) ribbons, three of them were blue. Not shabby, I'd say.
Too bad the Club doesn't meet during the summer. There's so many gardening activities to share.
Hope your gardening activities are off to an equally good start.
Arija

Local Farmer's Markets

The Saturday Morning Farmer's Market in the Stonington Borough is a real delight. With fresh and frozen seafood, local produce, baked goods, handmade pottery and flowers there is always something to bring home. And being located on the town docks makes it a very special treat. It is Saturday, May through October, 9 AM to Noon.


List of Local Farmer's Markets
Stonington/Mystic

Quiambaug Fire House, 50 Old Stonington Rd
Tuesdays, 2 to 6 PM, June through October

Denison Farm Market, 120 Pequotsepos Rd
Sundays, noon to 3 PM, June through October

Olde Mistick Village, 27 Coogan Blvd.
TBA, Sept through November

Stonington Borough, Town Docks
Saturdays, 9 AM to Noon, May through October

Westerly
Westerly Farmers' Market, 85 Main Street
Thursdays, 11 AM to 3 PM, May through October

Groton
Groton Farmers' Market, Groton Shopping Plaza Rte 1
Wednesdays, 2 to 6 PM, May through October