Thursday Doors: Horace Bushnell Congregational Church

Thursday Doors: Horace Bushnell Congregational Church

I am doing some volunteer freelance photography over the next few months for a local not-for-profit that is publishing a book of architectural styles in Connecticut from various time periods. I’m excited about it for a couple of reasons: first and foremost, my photographs will be in an actual hard cover book, with my byline (pretty cool!) Second,…

Thursday Doors: Ahern Funeral Home

Thursday Doors: Ahern Funeral Home

Is it just me, or can you tell that a home is a funeral home before you even see the sign? There is just a certain look about most funeral homes that gives their true purpose away. Not so with the Ahern Funeral Home in Hartford, CT. I noticed the pristine appearance and stunning architecture…

Thursday Doors: Aetna, I’m Glad I Met Ya!

Thursday Doors: Aetna, I’m Glad I Met Ya!

Remember this tag line? Introduced by Aetna in 1982, it helped to create brand name recognition for the company across the nation. I met a friend for coffee at Aetna today and decided the building would be a great subject for Thursday Doors, a weekly round-up hosted by Norm 2.0. According to the website’s history…

Tourist in My Own State: Harriet Beecher Stowe Center

Tourist in My Own State: Harriet Beecher Stowe Center

Let me begin by saying I apologize. I apologize to the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center, a recently designated National Historic Landmark, for the fact that I did not visit their wonderful museum and cultural resource during the first 46 years of my life, all of which I have lived in Connecticut and most of which I have…

Holidays + Historic Homes = One Surefire Way to Enjoy the Season

Holidays + Historic Homes = One Surefire Way to Enjoy the Season

It’s that time of year! The holidays and historic homes go together like Mr. and Mrs. Claus and organizations across New England and beyond host annual holiday house tours to showcase special homes and their holiday decorating style. For the first time last year I attended the The Friends of the Mark Twain House &…

One Street, Two Connecticut Cities and 8 Special Old Homes

One Street, Two Connecticut Cities and 8 Special Old Homes

One street and two cities, you say? No doubt it’s unusual but in this case it’s true. I recently took a fascinating walking tour of Prospect Avenue with Mary Falvey from Hartford Preservation Alliance and Mary Donohue of Connecticut Explored where I learned a bit of old home and architectural history. The middle of Prospect Avenue…