Category Archives: MansfieldCt

250 Years, One Family, One Farm

I am going down a research rabbit hole. My quest is to develop a Mansfield Historical Society display that honors the Stearns family in Mansfield, CT. for 250 years. How does one condense 250 years of living, farming, generations, wars, and weather into an exhibit? I’m trying…

The family purchased this farm in 1772. Tonight, I held that deed in my hand. I saw the signature of the man who walked here from Killingly, Boaz Stearns. He set to paper his claim to a hill of Chestnut trees and field with a fine saltbox house. Little would he realize the tenuous strand the farm would survive by at times, and yet it has. The American Revolution took a son, as did the Civil War. Nature played out her tempest in hurricanes, blizzards, droughts, and soggy seasons. Fires ravaged the farm in 1929, 1959, and tried again in 1989. How does a family pick up the pieces and continue?

Those pieces have been a different challenge for every generation. The important piece that was picked up was the CT Farmland Preservation program protecting 746 acres to forever be for agricultural use! No development will scar the land and erase the centuries of blood, sweat, and tears that fell on the soil there. We are charged with being stewards, here to protect and preserve and move it on to the next generations. So many stewards have walked this land just as I did today.

This morning I walked in the Spencer lot as it’s called. A dusty farm road lies between corn and hay land. Tonight, I found the original deed in the town hall vault. That ninety-acre parcel was purchased from Henry and Mary Spencer on June 26, 1852, for the grand sum of $50.00. A bargain in my opinion. I am sure they would all be pleased to see the newly planted corn sprouting and the hay waving in an early morning breeze. Farm lot names preserve a bit of history.

If you are intrigued by my research story or a family that stays on a farm for 250 years there is so much more. The exhibit opens Sunday, June 5, 2022, 1:30-4:30 at Mansfield Historical Society Rte 195 Storrs CT.

Mansfield General Store – What’s the Story Here?

Mansfield General Store – What’s the Story Here?

Today is the first of a series What’s the Story Here? This series will highlight interesting people, places and things I run across. Stop back for  another installment every few days. Thanks                          Mansfield General Store – good old fashioned country charm! They sure got it right on the business card, because this is the… Continue Reading

Signs I’m NOT in Downtown Mansfield

Signs I’m NOT in Downtown Mansfield

        Signs I’m NOT in Downtown Mansfield                                                                                                                                     contents under pressure caution ahead Parking Lots water color memories                                                 Make Hay While the Sun Shines                                                                                                                                                     Oh Deer! Hometown Pleasures                                                                          Whoa!                                                                                                                          Water everywhere but not a drop to drink                                                                                                                                                     homegrown                                                                                                                                          Girls Night Out                                                        I Love Mansfield, CT.                    Continue Reading

In The Vault We Found……..

In The Vault We Found……..

The phone call came a couple months ago from Wisconsin. The caller, Laura found my name on the town website listed as the Cemetery Sexton and she was searching for records. On a long quest to follow her family genealogy she soon discovered the Mayflower Society and how to trace back and show your roots… Continue Reading