#1 Reason Why I Love To Blog -- Feedback From Readers -- May 12, 2019

Before I get started, I am only beginning to understand the geography of New England, northeast of New York City, along the Connecticut coast, and up to Rhode Island, and across the sound to the island of Long. Connecticut, Yale, F. Scott Fitzgerald, is starting to make sense to me. Distances for me are hard to visualize without some reference point. For me this puts the Long Island Sound in perspective. The widest part of the sound is 21 miles (if I recall coreectly); the widest part of Flathead Lake is 15 miles. I have probably traveled it once or twice, but I don't recall, but I imagine the road along the coast from NYC to New Haven is beautiful. I would have taken a bus from Boston to New Jersey somewhere through this area back in the early 70's.

By the way, rambling again, when you read the note below and see the phrase "war room," for those (like me) who make fun of Occasional-Cortex, it doesn't take much to start a revolution.

Now, back to the original note. Sorry for the interruption / digression.

I happened to mention Connecticut yesterday in one of my posts (scroll down to "The Book Page").

Some years ago a reader was so interested in what he read about the Bakken he took a road trip out to the Dakotas. Since then he has corresponded irregularly.

In the note below:

• some great history
• some new words, and some words I seldom see (e.g., sachem)
• I agree completely with the reader's thoughts on Brexit (the Brits love bureaucracies and the "best" bureaucracy in the world is in Brussels)

From Connecticut, he wrote:

Hello,

When you’ve gotten ‘round to the Trumbulls of Lebanon, CT (my hometown), you really have traveled everywhere, whether in real life or by book!  Lebanon was founded in 1700, I’ve only been here since 1990 but the house next door is from 1703, been moved three times.

Above is a shot of my son in the War Office about 6 years ago, which is Trumbull’s general store, where war planning regularly took place due to it’s location between all those important places you mentioned in TMDW (Boston, Hartford, Providence, NYC, etc). 

Take a peek on Google for the Green and War Office at 06249, and its relationship to Boston and New York.  Also, elevation-wise, we’re off the beaten paths taken by toll roads in the valleys along the big rivers, good place to meet in secret back then, I guess.  

Historical Society has probably erected a half dozen buildings (museums, recreations, etc.) around the green in my last 30 years here and does archeological digs, summer revolutionary war encampments on the Green.  Lots of history.

Yes, the location is near midpoints from all these important places, but the real strength is that it’s in the middle of nowhere, except farmers, still.  That’s the other part of the War Office - provisioning of Washington’s Army (nutmeg state and all that).

Hope the hell that musket took out a redcoat; yeah we’re still a tad tender about such things out here in the woods.  Them dumb bastards will never brexit.

The War Office site on the Lebanon Green, one of the largest town greens anywhere (1.5 miles long, half mile wide of hayed grass), held the French Rochambeau and LaFayette encampments during the Revolution.  Kosciousko (sp?) was like also here, too.  Probably where all the “George Washington Slept Here” signs on US Route 6 come from, but I digress.

Back then, I’m told, in the early 1700s (pre-Revolution), the population of Lebanon rivaled that of Hartford, the current capitol, around 10-12,000; by 1750 that trend reversed greatly as Hartford and New Haven grew.  

When I moved here 30 years ago it was probably more like 6,000 and back up to 8,000 now.  Lot’s of surgers, all friendly, keep to themselves.

I went through the grantor/grantee records in town awhile back and have found myself to be the fifth owner of this land I call home since the Indian grants by the sachem Uncas.

And Benedict’s Arnold’s place is right down the road in Norwich, CT 06360!

Take care and thanks for a chance to represent Lebanon and provide your reading with some depth as you do for me for the Bakken; feel free to borrow anything here you feel is relevant (e.g. no problem with a picture post if you see fit!).