The
Farms of Farmingville
Serious historians, local history "junkies," and area
homeowners alike will re-live New England's agricultural "golden age"
by exploring 23 farmhouses in Ridgefield's Farmingville District, and meeting
generations of real people who gave them life. With more than 100 photos and
illustrations, the book explains:
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How a colonial farmhouse was built
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What the everyday life of a local farm family was like
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Who were the 13 "first families" of Farmingville
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How local domestic architecture evolved from 1720 - 1920
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The individual history of 23 surviving dwellings and 24 lost farms
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How the local school, church, mills, physician, bank, and even the
cemetery functioned
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How, why, and by whom Farmingville's stone walls were built
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Why area farmers were ultimately doomed by economics
"A delightful book" writes Connecticut State Historian,
Christopher Collier, and a "marvelous guide to the environs and houses so
nicely presented."
Christopher Wigren, Asst. Director of the Connecticut Trust for Historic
Preservation, recommends this work as not only "a part of the history of
Ridgefield, but it also helps to explain the buildings and landscape of the area
- much more interesting than just another 'hat Style Is It?' discussion."
Destined to become the reference volume of its field, The Farms of Farmingville
was produced at Gateway Press with the support of Ridgefield Preservation Trust,
to which a portion of all book sales will be contributed.
Retailing for $34.95, the book is available in Ridgefield at Books on the
Common, Keeler Tavern Museum, Bissell Pharmacy, the Chamber of Commerce, and
Turkey Ridge Antiques. Mail orders may be directed to the author at
Connecticut Colonel Publishing Company, 304 Farmingville Road, Ridgefield, CT
06877
Farmers
Against the Crown
On April 27 1777, a hastily assembled collection of farmers, tradesmen, old
men and boys, together with a handful of Continental soldiers, fought a
professional British Army more than thrice their number in Ridgefield,
Connecticut. Until now, published histories of this short but bloody
affair have been brief pieces based heavily on the commanding officers' formal
reports. Piecing together individual records from more than 100 soldiers
who fought at Ridgefield, Farmers Against the Crown by Keith Marshall Jones III
offers the first truly comprehensive account of Connecticut's only inland battle
during the War for Independence. Discover for the first time:
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The identities of militiamen from more than 15 towns who stood with
General Benedict Arnold at Ridgefield.
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A house-by-house map of the Battle site.
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Blow-by-blow action of all four engagements comprising the Battle of Ridgefield
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Background and photos of more than 20 buildings that witnessed the
affair . . . and still stand
today.
"I suspect that this telling will remain the standard account of the
Battle for a long, long, time," notes Connecticut State Historian
Christopher Collier. "The people of Ridgefield are fortunate, indeed,
to have among them such a skilled amateur historian whose writing makes a more
interesting read than most professionals."
Revolutionary War historian Gregory Edgar adds: "Farmers Against
the Crown is a long overdue, well-crafted micro-history of a too-long-ignored
militia action."
President of the Ridgefield Historical Society, and chairman of the 225th
Anniversary Battle of Ridgefield Program, local historian Keith Marshall Jones
III penned Farmers Against the Crown in his early Federal farmhouse erected by
Revolutionary War pensioner Nehemiah Banks some 12 years after hostilities
ceased.
Retailing for $18.95, the book is available in Ridgefield at
Books on the Common, Keeler Tavern Museum, Bissell Pharmacy, the Chamber of
Commerce, and Turkey Ridge Antiques. Mail orders may be directed to
Connecticut Colonel Publishing Company, 304 Farmingville Road Ridgefield,
CT 06877
To e-mail the author, click
here.