The narrow roadway was lined with cars, and the queue for the horse and buggy rides curled from the portico of the Wadsworth Mansion and spilled into the circular drive as hundreds turned out for the annual New Year's Day open house at the Long Hill Estate.
Inside the western gallery was jammed with people listening to the lilting bluegrass of Amy Gallatin and Stillwaters, and on the other end of the well-traveled hallway long lines formed for cookies and cocoa.
Docents provided tours of the many rooms in Middletown's lovingly restored public mansion, and outside impromptu snowball fights kept youngsters occupied.
Long Hill Estate staff members said that the turnout for the New Year's event was the largest ever since the open house was established several years ago. They estimated that there were twice as many attendees as had ever visited on the first day of a new year.
To Middletowneye:
ReplyDeleteWhat great coverage of Middletown’s welcome to the New Year with its picturesque Open House at the City's Wadsworth Mansion!
Several thousand people flocked in from all corners of the state – the folks I talked to came from more than 20 Connecticut towns - in addition to Albany, NY and St. Louis, MO – and most of them expressed amazement at finding such a treasure. Some also asked directions to the downtown and its restaurants, adding a nice ripple effect.
Eleven years after the Wadsworth Mansion opened on New Years Day, 2000, the story is much the same – the community rallied with the greatest enthusiasm.
In the 1990’s it was the citizens of Middletown who voted to preserve Long Hill and restore its mansion. Yesterday it was the volunteers of Middletown and the Greater Middletown community who continued the estate’s legendary hospitality.
Friends of Long Hill volunteers poured endless cups of cocoa and punch, served thousands of cookies and raced to the local stores for more when the food ran out. Docent Committee members repeatedly held the attention of listeners enthralled by this amazing preservation story and that of Middletown’s Wadsworth family. Other volunteers greeted the endless stream of guests, answered questions and led frosty nature walks. In support of all this, the phenomenal Long Hill staff provided the platform to host all the state. Overheard again and again, “Middletown is so nice to share this!”
My thanks to all who work so diligently to continue to make the mansion one of the jewels in Middletown’s crown. To them and to you – Happy New Year!
Joyce Kirkpatrick, Chair of the Docent Committee, Friends of Long Hill
PS: We would love to welcome new docents to the committee – just give the Mansion a call at 860/347-1064
It'd be great if families could hop from one venue to another throughout Middletown on the first day of the New Year. Let's call it FIRST DAY.
ReplyDeleteJust imagine the Wadsworth Mansion, venues at Wesleyan, Green Street Arts, the Buttonwood Tree, KidCity, Gen. Mansfield House, Oddfellows all hosting activities on First Day. Imagine hot cocoa and cookie stops at O'Rourkes, St. Vincent DePaul, and the Chamber. Maybe the Inn at Middletown and some of our great houses of worship would also serve as hosts to sponsor activities like ARTFARM and Gilbert & Sullivan Society.
Now that would take the tradition of Wadsworth hospitality to new heights!
Great suggestion from Cathy -- lots of visitors to the Mansion wanted to know what restaurants were open in Middletown, or asked for directions to specific places as they were leaving. And Bruce Spaman and Marcy Klattenberg did a great job leading trail hikes, but we could have used a couple more leaders, considering the high demand.
ReplyDeleteFriday's turnout at the Mansion was spectacular. Our apologies to those folks who were challenged finding a parking spot and had to wait in line. We never expected such attendance.
ReplyDeleteCedar Knoll Farms graciously extended the carriage rides until 5:00 p.m. to accommodate all those folks who waited patiently for a ride. What a treat they had as the estate was nearly empty, dusk had fallen and the sound of hoofs on the pavement and the jingle of bells was beautiful.
Our next free public event is Daffodil Day on April 25, but the trails are open daily if you just didn't get enough of us on Friday. We also have docent tours every Wednesday from 2:00 until 4:00.
Middletown residents should be proud of their mansion. Over the last ten years we have been the site of over 700 weddings, numerous magazine photoshoots and television advertisements. We have been featured on two television shows. No one leaves the estate without being appreciative of the committment Middletown made to restore the estate.
Happy New Year to all and we hope to see many more visitors.
Again we see one of the true gems of our city come to life. Wadsworth Mansion is truely a spectacular place, surrounded by beautiful grounds. I love the suggestion of tying in this event with the City's downtown. How about a suggestion that the City's restaurants provide some types of refreshment on this day, with directions to their establishments. Maybe a scenic ride from the downtown restaurants to Wadsworth Mansion provided by the Middletown Area Transit district so parking can be shared by city lots and the mansion itself. This ties in the downtown to this fantastic day at a gorgeous Mansion...just a suggestion.
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