ASCH

The Association for the Study of Connecticut History

The year has gotten off to a very fast start and there is much news and information to report.

In December, Robert Asher informed the ASCH Board of Directors that he has decided to retire as editor of Connecticut History at the end of 2003 with the publication of the second issue of volume 42. Under Bob’s editorship, the journal expanded in size, added exhibition reviews, and now appears on a regular schedule. Since 1998, Bob has produced two high quality issues of the journal each year. We wish Bob the best in retirement and thank him for his dedication to Connecticut History.

At a winter board meeting, the ASCH Board of Directors unanimously voted to appoint Matthew Warshauer, Associate Professor of History at Central Connecticut State University, as the new editor of Connecticut History. Matt has a Ph.D. from St. Louis University and has been a member of the CCSU history department since 1997. He has also served on the Connecticut History editorial board. Matt is working with Bob on transition matters and all future submissions should be directed to him. He will assume full editorial duties starting in 2004. I know you will find Matt a pleasure to work with and we all look forward to building upon Bob’s success as editor.

You may remember from the Fall newsletter that Central Connecticut State University offered to host an ASCH website on the CCSU server. The website, designed and maintained by Matt, is now up and running. The web address is: http://asch.ccsu.edu/ With a website, members will be able to view the program for the forthcoming meetings, a list of Board members, criteria and deadlines for Linsley and Babbidge Awards, the table of contents to Connecticut History, and print a membership application. There are links to the sites for the Connecticut Humanities Council and Connecticut League of History Organizations, as well as online Connecticut history sources. The website enhances communication between the Board and the membership, please take a look. I look forward to your comments.

ASCH thanks Provost Pearl Bartelt and the administration at Central Connecticut State University for their outstanding support of Connecticut History and the ASCH website.

Richard DeLuca is the new membership chair for ASCH. He is a free-lance writer working on a book on Connecticut transportation. Richard is computerizing our membership database so that we have up to date information on our members. He is finalizing the membership list for the mailing of the first issue (or Spring issue) of volume 42. Those who have not yet paid their dues for 2003, please do so as soon as possible. The issue is scheduled to be mailed in late May/early June and those who have not paid by early May will not receive it. (Unpaid members have a red * on the address label of the envelope.) If you have questions about your membership status, contact Richard directly.

Betsy Fox put together a fine program on “Shaping the Connecticut Landscape” for the Fall 2002 meeting at the Mattatuck Museum in Waterbury. The program featured speakers: William Hosley, Victor Geraci, Hildegard Cummings, and Charlene Perkins Cutler. Following the program, there was the presentation of the Homer D. Babbidge Award to Cecelia Bucki for her book, Bridgeport’s Socialist New Deal, 1915-36; and the Betty M. Linsley Award to The New London County Historical Society for the publication of A View from the Sixties: The Black Experience in Southeastern Connecticut, a Memoir by Linwood W. Bland, Jr.

As you can see by the enclosed program, the spring meeting is coming up soon. Debra Mecky invited us to the Bush-Holley Historic site and we are very pleased to be going there. Sally Whipple is chairing the program. In addition to the program of speakers, there will be a brief ASCH business meeting that will include the election of officers. This will be followed by a tour of The Greenwich Historical Society Museum. For additional information about The Historical Society of the Town Greenwich, visit their website at: http://www.hstg.org

Looking ahead, Katherine Hermes at CCSU is in charge of the Fall 2003 meeting to be held at Central Connecticut State University on Saturday, November 8. This year’s program topic is “Native American and the Law”. A partial list of speakers include: Yasuhide Kawashima, author of Igniting King Philip’s War; Ann Marie Plane, author of Colonial Intimacies; Jace Weaver, author of Other Words: American Indian Essays on Literature, Law and Culture; and Lucianne Lavin and Paulette Morange-Crone, both of whom are cultural specialists who have spoken extensively on Schaghticoke land issues. Please mark your calendars and save the date.

I also want to remind ASCH members that the annual meeting of the Connecticut League of History Organizations will be held on Monday, June 2 at the Connecticut Historical Society in Hartford. The theme of this year’s meeting is “Using the Past to Change the Future: A Strategy for Historical Organizations.”

Due to Connecticut’s fiscal crisis, the Connecticut Humanities Council is under fire. The Cultural Heritage Development Fund is being cut and there are plans to create a super agency that would merge the Connecticut Historical Commission, State Tourism Office, Connecticut Film Commission and the Connecticut Commission on the Arts into one large Commission on the Arts, Culture, and Tourism.

In February, the ASCH Board voted to join the Connecticut Heritage Coalition. The Coalition, led by the Humanities Council, was established to protect state funding for the heritage and preservation community. The Humanities Council has been very supportive of ASCH for many years. I encourage the membership to keep abreast of the situation faced by the Connecticut Humanities Council by going to the Coalition website at: http://www.ctculture.org/chdf/ To receive notification updates from Bruce Fraser, you can register at the site. The site provides background information, updates, talking points, and a list of representatives you can contact to express your support for the Humanities Council and the Cultural Heritage Development Fund.

Editor, Connecticut History 2004: Matt Warshauer, 860-332-2803; warshauerm@ccsu.edu

Editor, Connecticut History: Robert Asher, 860-486-4553; asher@uconnvm.uconn.edu